They Shall Not Pass!
by Grubkiller19
Summary: Mankind has been through so much in it's struggle for survival. But the Empire has no regard for Man's problems. Only for its own quest for power and domination. The Empire moves to subjugate the only people that has ever dared to defy them. But they will find that to be a difficult endeavor. DISCONTINUED.
1. Chapter 1-timeline

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything.**

 _The year is 2561. It has been 8 years since the Human-Covenant War ended, but Humanity's struggle has not ended._

 _Instead it has only intensified. After Surviving a revolution in the outer colonies that led to both the creation of a collection of rouge colonies known as the Systems Alliance and the Breakdown in First Contact with yet another collection of Alien Species known as the Citadel Council, and war with remnants of the old Covenant that have refused to cease hostilities in 2552, Humanity seemed to be on the brink of Collapse once again._

 _But Miraculously, they've survived. But not only that, they have managed to become an unchallenged Galactic power in the Orion Arm of the Milky Way._

 _But some things don't last forever._

 _Now Humanity has a new threat. This one takes the form of the Galactic Sith Empire from the nearby Andromeda Galaxy, and with almost everyone making Concessions to the Sith as they expand into the Milky way, Humanity seems like the only entity willing to dare look the New order in the eye and say, NO!_

 _Now, the Empire moves in to bring the people of Earth and it's colonies to their knees. But that they will learn that despite having just gotten out of two wars for their survival, Humanity's resolve is a strong as ever. The UEG declares a state of emergency and the UNSC defense force, the military arm of the UEG, steps in to resolve the crisis._

 _Unbeknownst to the Sith Empire, and all of the galactic powers watching on the sidelines, each UNSC serviceman marches off to the front with these words on their lips: They Shall Not Pass!_

 **March, 2553: Humanity and the Elites sign the peace treaty that officially ends the Human-Covenant War.**

 **Summer, 2553: Humanity comes into contact with the Turian Hierarchy. First Contact breaks down and the Turians invade the UEG outer colony Shanxi, the first planet to both fall to the Citadel races, but also openly rebel against the UEG, which inspires other colonies to secede. This leads to the creation of the Systems Alliance, an anti-UEG organization, which joins the Citadel Races. This leads the other governments of the Citadel Council to intervene Between the UEG and the Turians/SA. The Asari Republics and Salarian Union offers a peaceful solution, in which the Turians and UEG sign a peace treaty, while the Systems Alliance joins the Citadel as an associate race. The UNSC adamantly refuses, seeing the Turians as invaders, and the Systems Alliance as traitors. So they attack.**

 **Fall 2553-Winter 2555: Humanity fights the Citadel Council in a bloody war that sees little movement in the frontline. The UNSC outmatches the Citadel technology and with experience. But the Citadel has greater numbers, and economic/scientific aid from their ally, the Galactic Republic, over in the Andromeda Galaxy. Also the UNSC is dealing with growing insurrectionist movements and the Storm Covenant. But eventually, the Citadel cries uncle first, and makes concessions to the UNSC. These concessions include reparations to the UEG, the annexation of one-third of Systems Alliance territory, and access to worlds in the Skyline Verge, a region of space, claimed by the Batarian Hegemony.**

 **2555-2561: UEG enjoys peace in it's time, and an economic boom, while the Citadel falls into Economic Stagnation.**

 **2561: The Sith Empire, having defeated the Galactic Republic and ceasing control of the entire andromeda galaxy(star wars galaxy, for sake of this story), expands into the Milky way Galaxy. They bite off territory from the Citadel Govermants, which can't do much about it considering the poor economic development, and make the Batarian Hegemony an Ally and military base for the Empire in the region. This puts them on the Border with the UEG Frontier worlds. The Batarians, backed by the Sith Empire, demand territorial and financial concessions from the UEG, who adamantly refuse. This blatant refusal of the Batarian's demand, and by extension the Empire's, leads to a declaration of war on the UEG, who mobilizes for war and gives emergency war time powers to the UNSC. The Empire underestimating the resolve of the UNSC, is surprised to see the UNSC amassing for an all out brawl.**

 **There will be no surrender or mercy!**


	2. Chapter 2-factions

**A/N: Hey folks, Grubkiller here. Here's my new chapter. This chapter focuses on the factions that will appear or be mentioned in this story. I'm also working on another story at the moment, and still thinking of a plot to this story, so it might be a little while before I update. But you know, baby steps. That is very important in plot development. But for now, enjoy.**

 **Unified Earth Government** : The UEG is the main government of Humanity. It's capital is on Earth and it governs all of it's colonies. The UEG is a Federal Constitutional Representative Democracy, they mostly stick to governing Earth and the Inner Colonies, while they gave limited autonomy to the outer colonies **(N/A: If you're an 'Murican like me, then just think of state's rights and you'll be fine)** to maintain stability and promote Libertarian beliefs in the region. The current president of the UEG is James Montaine, former governor of the colony world Vekta.

 **United Nations Space Command Defense Force** : The UNSC is the Military, Scientific, and Exploratory arm of the UEG. Developed in the 2100's, the UNSC has been the work horse behind Humanity's expansion over the years and has led Humanity's war effort in the Insurrection, Human-Covenant War, and the war against the Citadel known as the Pendulum wars. In each war, the UNSC was given emergency power over the UEG and CAA(Colonial Administration Authority, which governs the outer colonies and commands the Colonial Military Administration), which was then turned back over to the UEG and CAA. The current war with the Empire is no different.

 **Office of Naval Intelligence** : AKA, ONI, an infamous black ops organization within the UNSC, which has given ONI funding and Jurisdiction over secret projects and secret operations, including the Spartan programs and recent Black ops missions for the CIS within Republic territory during the Clone Wars. They define the term shadow organization.

 **Galactic Sith Empire** : For hundreds of years after their "destruction" in the Great Sith War at the hands of the Jedi Order and the Republic, the Sith went into exile. The Sith, their military and any citizen loyal to them went into hiding in the unknown regions. They were thought by the jedi and galaxy to have been destroyed. They were for hundreds of years, humiliated. But they've managed to build a civilization within the unknown regions and they slowly became a military superpower in exile with an enraged population and leadership. With the Turmoil of the galaxy during the Clone Wars and the Yuuzhan Vong Wars, the Sith made their move amidst the chaos. They rallied an enraged populace that felt abandoned by the Republic, and managed to conquer the galaxy and destroy the Republic. Allied with the Hutts, Chiss, Batarians, Vorcha, and Krogan, and with everyone appeasing the Empire in exchange for peace, the Empire continues to expand at the expense of everyone's Freedom. That is until the UEG refused to give land over the the Batarians, and pay taxes to the Empire every time they passed through their territory, which they also refused (since it would threaten to reveal the location of Earth to the empire, thereby giving the Empire a strategic advantage in the region). The Empire is also facing growing Rebellions across their territory, which threaten to rip the Empire apart. The Empire is now at war, not only to crush the UNSC that defied them, but also to reestablish the fear of destruction that everyone shows, or has at one point showed, towards them.

 **The Swords of Sanghelios(Probably spelling that wrong):** After the collapse of the Covenant in 2552, the Sangheilli, known as the elites by humanity, rebelled against the covenant. Led by the Arbiter, Thel Vadam, the elites sided with humanity to bring the Covenant Empire to it's knees. After the War, the Arbiter signed a peace treaty with humanity, and then went back to his homeward to unite the different clans. But many clans rejected the peace treaty. Some took up arms against the Arbiter and his Swords of Sanghelios. This started a civil war, commonly referred to as the Blooding Years, which nearly destroyed the Sangheilli. With the Storm Covenant crushed, the Sangheilli now pay attention to the two other threats rising, Atriox's takeover of Doisac, and the Sith Empire approaching to destroy the Arbiter's greatest Ally, the people of Earth and it's colonies.

 **The Storm Covenant** : One Sangheilli clan leader, Jul 'Mdama, created a faction called the storm Covenant, they were a group of Religious zealots that made enemies with the UEG after awaking the Didact and terrorizing Earth. When the Didact was killed by the Legendary Sierra 117, the Storm retreated to Requiem, where they tried to search the planet of Forerunner artifacts. The faction fell apart in 2558 when Jul was killed by ONI agents on the planet Kamchatka. The remnants of the Storm were destroyed by the Arbiter during the Battle of Suniaon.

 **The Created** : just kidding, moving along.

 **The Banished** : Founded and led by the Brute Warlord Atriox, the Banished started off as a small pack of Brutes that rebelled against the Covenant. The Banished made a name for themselves by launching a guerrilla war (LOL, Apes launching a guerrilla war) against small Covenant outposts and slowly building an Army. After the Human-Covenant war ended in 2553, the Banished grew in strength, by recruiting former Covenant warlords, Sangheilli mercenaries, and an army of Grunts, Lekgolo colonies, and Huragok engineer's, and building a fleet. The Banished tried to Take control of the Ark in the confusion of the Created event (which failed for the sake of this story). They failed when a long lost UNSC warship, the Spirit of Fire was able to disrupt their operations and send a distress signal to Earth for reinforcements. Fleeing from the UNSC, Atriox and his Banished, made a move on Doisac, the homeward of his Species, the Jiralhanae. With his takeover of the Brute Home world, Atriox, now Chieftain of the Brutes after defeating Cheiftan Lydus, is now turning his attention to the rest of the Galaxy starting the Arbiter and the UNSC. The Sith Empire's presence might prove to be beneficial in the long run, for Atriox that is.

 **The Citadel Council:** The Citadel Races are a collective of Alien Races In another part of the Milky way Galaxy. They are led by the militaristic Turian Hierarchy, the Salarian Union, and the diplomatic Asari Republics. They promote peace, co-opertion, and unity for all members of the Citadel races. They are an economic and military union. Citadel races include the following: Turians, Asari, Salarians, Hanar, Drell, Volus, Elcor, and the Quarians. Humans from the newly formed System's Alliance are the latest addition, as well as the most controversial. This Alliance formed by rebelling against the UEG, which(along with BS treaty terms) led to the war between the UEG and the Citadel. When the "Pendulum wars" (as the the UEG came to call it) ended, the Citadel was forced to pay reparations to the UEG through land rights, by giving up 1/3 of System's Alliance, and giving territorial claims to the UEG for control of the the Skylian verge region (previously owned by the Batarians). The Citadel is now suffering from a stagnating economy, and with their weakened state and a growing Sith threat, the Citadel is forced to sit back, gather their strength, and watch as their old enemies face off against this new threat.

 **The Galactic Republic Resistance** : For thousands of years, the Republic was the Government that democratically ruled over the galaxy(the one that the UEG calls Andromeda). After the ancient Sith Empire was driven from the galaxy, with the help of the Jedi, the Republic ruled unchallenged for centuries. But corruption began to take control of the once mighty Republic and it threatened the whole galaxy with what would come to be known as the Clone wars. After the Clone Wars, a horrible enemy calling itself the Yuuzhan Vong invaded the galaxy, killed trillions of people, and nearly defeated the Republic. Afterwards, many people felt abandoned by the Republic that was supposed to protect them. The Sith Empire, returning from exile, took advantage of the chaos and anger, conquered Corusant and then supposedly destroyed the Republic. But unbeknownst to the rest of the Galaxy (save for a few loyal planets)in reality, the remnants of the Republic Army, Navy, along with any senator, Jedi or citizen still loyal to Chancellor Dalyell, and what remains of his government, gathered over the temporary capital on Denon. they then retreated to a secret Republic stronghold in the hidden star system of Azura. It is from here that the Republic begins to rebuild. Cloning Facilities modeled after the Kamino facilities create new Clone, hidden shipyards slowly build new warships, the Jedi begin to rebuild their order. At the same time GAR spec ops and a new Republic intel organization (Codename: Project Fulcrum) begin to secretly feed intel and supplies to a growing Rebel Alliance that plans to bring the Empire down. The Republic is far from defeated, and they are carefully watching this new development between the UEG and Sith Empire, waiting to take advantage of the situation.

 **That's all the factions folks.**


	3. chapter 3-Calm before the storm

**Hey Folks, Grubkiller here, this chapter will focus on the soldiers of both sides preparing for war. I will not focus on any group of characters for to long. This isn't about the characters, it's about the journey. Also, sorry if it took me a while to update this story. I was working on another story.**

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 **Sydney, Commonwealth of Australia, Capitol of the Unified Earth Government, location of the Senate and Colonial** **parliament. Residency of recently elected UEG President, James Montaine**

It was a cloudy evening. The setting sun was shining it's orange rays, which reflected off of the gray clouds, giving the already gorgeous Sydney skyline a colorful look.

President Montaine, a tall, reasonably built man with a full head of gray hair was looking out the window of his office in the Presidential residence. From there, he could look out across the Sydney Harbor and get a good look at the Opera house.

"Beautiful isn't it? Someone should take a picture," the most powerful man in the civilian government said.

"Mister President, if you don't mind, It's time for us to get down to business". President Montaine turned around to see that the voice had come from the most powerful man in the UNSCDF: Lord Terrance Hood, Fleet Admiral of the UNSC Home Fleet, and CINC of the UNSC emergency military government.

"Pardon me Lord Hood, sometimes I need the distraction," Montaine said.

"I understand sir, but we made it through the war with the Covenant, and I believe that we will make it through this one as well," Hood said reassuringly.

Montaine gave a small smile in agreement. Before Montaine ever became President or even Governor of Vekta (an agrarian inner colony founded by migrants from the agricultural Middle America, and who's flag was hanging from a wall in the Montaine's office) he had been a member of the Vektan Colonial Guard and was pulled from its ranks to serve in the War against the Covenant. Vekta had been spared the horrors of the War, but most planets weren't so lucky. Montaine knew war, and was probably about to lead Humanity through another one.

Lord Hood not only fought in the war against the Covenant, but he distinguished himself by leading the defense of the Sol system in 2552. He was considered an iconic figure in Human space. He also was put in charge of the emergency government, which was when the military was given control of the government in times of war, which was what this meeting between the two leaders was about.

There were also members of the UNSC's UNICOM and NAVCOM, as well as members of Montaine's cabinet present to bare witness to the occasion.

"How could it have come to this? Why would Palpatine want to go to war with us?" asked Joshua Sweeney a member of the Cabinet. "It's because the Emperor is surrounded by "yes men" who agree with him no matter what. He's never heard the word "No" before, so he reacts like a spoiled child that doesn't get his way," Said Admiral Harper of the Home Fleet.

"I think that we should've negotiated with the Empire. Maybe we should have given them some concessions," said Speaker O'Malley. O'Malley was someone that the Montaine and the Military could not stand. He would give away half of the galaxy if it meant peace.

Montana got up to shut O'Malley down. "Let me tell you a story Mr Speaker. Eight centuries ago, the United States's shipping was being threatened by pirates working for the Barbary states in North Africa right after the Revolution. They said that if we paid them tribute every year, then they would stop. And some people agreed to making concessions. But Thomas Jefferson believed that concessions would only lead to further attacks from the Barbary states. So when he became America's third president, he refused to pay any further tribute and instead parked the newly formed US navy off the Barbary shores and sent a few cannon balls their way. It eventually brought them to the negotiating tables," Montaine said, while everyone in the room listened with interest.

O'Malley interrupted Montaine. "Mr president, as much as I enjoy your rousing stories, what is the point you are trying to make?"

"Making concessions doesn't work. As long as no one challenges the Empire, then they will continue to expand at our expense. The only words that they understand are words that come from the mouth of a cannon. I will not bow to that old fart that they call an emperor. I choose to be Thomas Jefferson. We will not grant any concessions to the Empire. We will dig in and protect our own interests and our borders. I know that this will be a difficult challenge, but as Hood said earlier, we defeated the Covenant, so we can beat back the Empire".

Everyone in the room clapped at Montaine's rousing speech. Even his critics would admit that he was a hell of a speaker.

"At the end of the week, I'm going to be giving an address to everyone in human space. And I want that bastard on Coruscant to listen. I'll transfer power over to Lord Hood then. Until then, you are all dismissed," Montaine said, and with that everyone filed out of the room.

 _Now it's time to start writing the speech,_ Montaine thought to himself.

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 **Coruscant, Capital of the Empire, home of the Galactic Imperial Senate,**

 **Emperor Palpatine's private HQ tower.**

It was nighttime in the Imperial Capital on Coruscant. Standing tall over the planet wide metropolis was Emperor Palpatine's private tower and HQ.

Palpatine himself was staring out over the city and the thousands of speeders zipping by every second. _Look at them go about their pathetic lives, as if nothing was happening,_ the Emperor thought to himself.

Star Destroyers were hanging over the city's skyline, while Imperial military transports floated by carrying loads of Imperial Stormtroopers. They were being escorted by flights of Tie fighters that also patrolled the airways.

Down below, at the base of the tower, thousands of Imperial Troopers stood in tight ranks, and were preparing to load onto the nearby transports. Massive four legged behemoths stomped towards much larger transports.

The Emperor couldn't help but admire the view. This was the culmination of a plan that was centuries in the making. That plan ended with the downfall of his worst enemy, the Galactic Republic and their Jedi pets.

Now, the entire galaxy was in the palm of his hands, and everyone the Empire came into contact with either allied with the Empire, or payed a price.

He had ordered the senate to start expanding into the Milky Way galaxy in order to obtain more resources. They also made new allies and have now started obtaining imported slave labor from these new allies.

However there was one small inconvenience on the path towards the Emperor's final plans of galactic domination. That inconvenience took the form of the Unified Earth Government and its colonies, completely occupied by another human race, one that was completely disconnected from the Known Galaxy, and one that takes pleasure in being stubborn.

When the UEG refused to make concessions to the Empire, Palpatine felt insulted and humiliated. _How dare these peasants defy my will_ , the Emperor thought. Ever since then he was looking for an excuse to justify an invasion of the UEG to the senate. But of coarse, the senate was full of people who liked to say yes to Palpatine, so it wasn't hard to convince them.

The senate hadn't declared war on the UEG just yet, so he had to go and convince them one final time. _It is time for me to send my loyal supporters to do my bidding_ , Palpatine thought to himself, referring to the speech he was about to make to the senate. With that, Palpatine, escorted by his red cloaked Royal Guardsmen, headed for the shuttle that would take him to the Senate Building.

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 **Planet Aratoht. Batarian military/shipbuilding installation.** **13 BBY(Star Wars galaxy year). Imperial/Batarian Staging Area for potential Invasion of UEG Space.**

It was warm and humid out, as the heavy rainfall fell on the imperial encampment. All around white-armored imperial storm troopers, who formed the backbone of the Imperial army were either patrolling the perimeter, exercising, drilling, or just doing the daily duties of Stormtroopers, which involved serving the Emperor, Sheev Palpatine, with unwavering loyalty.

On the landing pad at the end of the base, an Imperial Lambd class shuttle had touched down. As it landed, it folded it's wings upward like a dainty butterfly **(N/A:name that show)** and the ramp underneath the cockpit opened up to dispense it's cargo, which happened to be a platoon's worth of new stormtrooper rookies, fresh out of training. They all dispersed looking for their units.

One such stormtrooper was one Anson Trask. He was assigned to the 407th Stormtrooper Division's Joker squad, who distinguished themselves on a Mandalorian colony when they fought the super commando warriors that defied Imperial rule. Trask walked around the base aimlessly looking for his unit. All the while being mocked for being a rookie. "Hey Noob, you lost? Your mommy isn't gonna help you way out here," one stormtrooper said with his helmet off.

Tracks continued through the camp in order to look for his unit. He then decided that he should go look for help. Trask walked up to the first person he saw.

It was a figure with a dark cloak. "Hey buddy? can you tell me where I can Joker squad D company, 407th division?" He asked not really looking up from his holo-map which had a map of the camp.

The cloaked figure turned around and looked down at Trask with a deep, dark, fury in its eyes. The figure was a Quarren from the planet Mon Calamari. But this particular Quarren was a Sith Inquisitor. The Emperor's personal warriors. They were only sent out if the situation. "Oh Shit!" Trask silently exclaimed.

The yellow eyed Sith warrior was about to introduce Trask to his fury for the noob's insolence. Then suddenly a new voice came out of nowhere. "There you are Noob!" The voice belonged to a bearded stormtrooper with blue stripes on his armor **(N/A:force unleashed stormtrooper commander).** "What the hell are you doing bothering Lord Malavel? You were supposed to wait by the landing platform until I came to collect you".

Trask looked at the sergeant confused. "But sir-," The sergeant got in his face "Don't through your buts at me Noob (N/A: name that show)," said the stormtrooper veteran. He then turned to the Quarren Inquisitor. "Lord Malevel, my name is Sgt Harkas. This is my squad's newest addition. Please excuse the rookie for his insolence."

The Sith warrior stood there for a few minutes before speaking. "See to it that he is disciplines, or I will". "Yes my lord," the stormtrooper veteran said. The sith turned away.

"Um, sir, I didn't get any orders that you mentioned," the rookie said. "No you didn't, but someone had to save your dumbass from that inquisitor. I'm Sergeant Harkas, Joker squad. I guess that means your with me, unfortunately".

Harkas led Trask to Joker squads tent. When they went inside, they found the rest of Joker squad. "Welcome to the 407th noob, you will be bunking with these maggots and lady maggot for as long as you're in this unit," harkas said. "Over there is Jes Gistang with the big gun," Harkas pointed to a redheaded lady, who nodded at Trask, polishing her grenade launcher. "That over there is Vax Potorr," Harkas pointed to the bald trooper rifling through Trask's large army pack.

"Why is he going through my stuff?" The rookie asked, trying to pull his bag away. "He's gonna replace the cheap shit, and get you some better shit". "Isn't that against regulations". A trooper in the corner, who was sharpening his knife explained. "Listened Noob, regulation is another word for rules, and rules were made to be broken".

"The trooper over there, who'll use his knife for anything except cut his hair, is a Mando named Hondo Karr". Harks said pointing at the knife yielding stormtrooper. "I keep telling you guys that I'm from Botajef, a colony loyal to the Empire," the Mandalorian said.

As Trask unloaded his bag near his new cot, Lieutenant Gil Cassel, a gray haired officer came in to talk to Harkas. "Sgt Harkas. I need to speak with you for a moment," the gray haired veteran stated. "Yes sir. Everyone head for the mess hall get some grub. We're leaving first thing tomorrow". "Yes sir," they all said in unison before exiting the tent.

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The jokers, Karr, Potorr, Gistang, and Trask all went to the mess hall.

The mess hall was filled to the brink. Troopers everywhere were line waiting to be served. The tables were still reasonably available. Most tables were normally occupied by a different unit. No one really mingled with the other platoons.

It also seemed like any normal mess hall that could've been used by any military. Only this was the Imperial military, which meant that propaganda posters lined the wall, and ISB agents patrolled the aisles, listening for any possible dissenters. One poster had a portrait of Palpatine himself pointing his finger, and below the towering emperor, imperial tie fighters and soldiers moved in the direction he was pointing, the premise being that wherever the Emperor tells them to go, they go **(N/A: I got the idea from a Soviet poster in world war 2 of Stalin doing the same thing)**.

Holo-projectors played the sermons of imperial propaganda officers, who told the viewers to remember their duty, and to pledge their loyalty to Palpatine and to the Empire. But sense the Empire was gearing up for war, the political officers weren't preaching about the peace and prosperity under Imperial rule. They were talking about the "evil UEG colonialists" and their "UNSC attack dogs".

" _The Unified Earth Government is nothing more than an expansionist regime. They want to destroy the peace that the Empire has built to make us prosperous Remain vigilant my comrades. The UEG is deceitful and treacherous. They claim to fight for freedom and love peace, put all the while, they hold their people down. They are ruled by industrialists who gain their wealth by waging war on their neighbors. Their soldiers are nothing more than unmotivated, poverty stricken slaves. With our great leader, Emperor Palpatine, leading our glorious armed forces to victory, we shall destroy the iron fisted UNSC, and liberate it's suffering people"._

Trask and the rest of joker squad filled their trays with food and looked for a spot, which they found in the back near the holonet monitors. They playing sporting events, pod racing, and the news (Imperial news). Some even showed exotic dancers in a popular bar on Coruscant.

The squad sat down and started digging into their trays. Karr and Potorr watched the monitor with exotic Twi'lek dancers "shaking it" on stage. Some troopers began to hoot and holler. "Hm, men," an annoyed Gistang said enjoying her food.

"So what's your story noob?" She asked the rookie who was also enjoying his food. "Well, I was born and raised by my family on Lothal. My family loved life in the Empire. We were upper class, my mom was a prosecutor for the Imperial court of justice (they deal with dissenters), and my dad was actually in the Roan-Fel's imperial army from Bastion. When the people revolted against the government, he and a lot of soldiers from the 407th sided with the Sith to overthrow Roan-Fel and conquer the core systems. And know, I guess I got sick of the upper-class life style, so I decided to go out on my own. So I decided to sign up with the Corps," Trask said.

"And you?" Gistang stopped eating to explain her story. "I'm from Corellia. I grew up there during the Clone wars and the Vong wars a year after that. We got sick of the Republic, so we revolted. My parents were killed in the revolution by the Republic Onyx Guard. When the core was liberated by the Empire, my brothers signed up with the Imperial Stormtrooper corps to fight the Republic. Me and my sisters went to go live with our grandparents. Sense i was the oldest, I had to step up and help out," Gistang explained to the Noob.

"So why did you join the Stormtrooper Corps?" "To tell you the truth, originally wanted to be a pilot, but I failed flight school. So I became a stormtrooper. I guess overall, I was inspired by my brothers. When they came back home after beating the Republic, we were so happy for them. I wanted to be like them".

Trask smiled. "I guess we all wanna be like someone in our families," Trask said. "True," Gistang agreed.

They continued eating when Trask pointed towards Potorr and Karr, who were still watching the holo-screen. "So what's their stories?" "They don't like to talk much. But Potorr was a petty thief before the army drafted him. It was either that or prison," said Gistang, describing her bald headed squad mate.

"Karr on the other hand was a mandalorian warrior before he joined the Empire. His planet, Botajef, which was loyal to the Empire along with several other Mandalorian colonies. After the Republic was destroyed, several of Mandalore's colonies pledged their loyalty to the Empire, which Mandalore didn't appreciate one bit. So they invaded colonies like Botajef. By the time the Empire conquered Mandalore, Botajef had been reduced to an ash ridden wasteland. He lost all of his fellow warriors, his clan, and his planet. So I guess he joined the Empire, because that's all he had left," Gistang said, describing her quiet teammate.

Trask sat their stunned. "whoa, that's deep," Trask said looking over at his new Mandalorian teammate. "Yeah, don't talk about it to him," Gistang said. Trask nodded in agreement.

Just then, Potorr and Karr, who came from watching the holo-screens with the other troops, came to join the other two Jokers at the table. "Wow, those Twi'leks sure no how to dance. Maybe you can dance just like them Gistang?" Potter said, flirting with his teammate, who shrugged it off. "In your dreams Potorr," Gistang said.

Potorr chuckled. He leaned over to Karr. "She's totally into me," Potorr said. Gistang rolled her eyes at her delusional teammate. Potter then looked over to Trask. "So noob, you have a girl back wherever the hell it is you came from?" "Yes, I do. She's my Fiancé," Trask said, which drew the attention from the rest of the squad".

They were all silent, until the quiet Karr broke the silence. "I hope you get back to her safely". Everyone then stared at the normally silent Mandalorian with surprise. "Thank you," Trask said. Karl nodded in return.

Just then, the sith warrior from earlier, Darth Malevel, entered the mess hall escorted by several Sith troopers. These Sith troopers wore black armor and wore the hoods of the Emperor's royal guards. They had red accents and visors on their armor. These soldiers were feared across the galaxy, and were the elite of the Emperor's Armed forces. They were personally led by Darth Vader and his Sith inquisitors. Regular Stormtroopers policed planets in the outer rim, so seeing a Sith trooper was only joined the battle if things were serious. When Malevel entered, all conversations stopped. He didn't even have to speak to make his presence felt.

He spoke as loud as he could, his voice echoing off of the walls to increase the sound of his voice. "Soldiers of the the Empire. As you know, we are preparing for war with the enemies of our Emperor. We are about to show you our glorious Emperor speak on the matter know".

Everyone in the room looked at the largest monitors on either side of the room. The lights were dimmed, as to offer better vision for the monitors. The monitors screen's turned on and soon enough, they revealed the face of the Empire, Emperor Palpatine himself.

He still looked the way he did in the old days when he was Chancellor of the Republic (he doesn't turn ugly in this AU). He stood on the towering central podium in the Imperial Senate chamber. He was surrounded by thousands of senators from thousands of different worlds in the Galaxy. They all watched as their Emperor spoke.

" _Members of the Imperial Congress. As you all know, it has always been the Empire's mission to maintain peace, order, and security throughout the Galaxy. And ever since then, we have worked toward co-operation with the people that we proudly call allies in our just cause. We have worked hard to ensure that our people, and the people of our allies, are all treated with dignity and respect. Although, I regret to inform you, we are currently in the middle of a diplomatic crisis. Far from this very planet, in a galaxy just recently revealed to us, we face a threat to that peace we have built. A peace which has allowed for the collective prosperity for the citizens of our Empire. A peace that we have worked so hard to obtain. One of our closest allies, the Batarian Hegemony is suffering the most horrific injustice imaginable. Their land has been stolen from them by an expansionist power, known as the Unified Earth Government. This UEG has been a trouble to our progress in the past. They provided aid to the CIS during the Clone Wars. They stomped upon the rights of their own people under their steel boots. They have waged a bloody war against each of their neighbors, due to their Imperialistic and Militaristic ambitions. And recently, they have violated the sovereignty of the Batarian Hegemony, our greatest ally in the Milky way galaxy. The UEG walked in, and took what rightfully belongs to the Batarian_ people. _Know that we have done everything that we can to negotiate a settlement between the two entities. But, I regret to inform you, that the UEG and their UNSC attack dogs have refused our requests and have walked away from the negotiating table. We have tried to reopen a dialog. But ever since, the UEG has threatened violence against our Batarian brethren, and they continue to defy and insult the peace_ _loving people of our prosperous Empire. We are now at war with the UEG. We must now meet this new threat to ensure the security and prosperity of our people, and liberate the people suffering under the rule of the treacherous government of the Sol System. Rise up warriors and citizens of the Empire. Victory will be ours, and peace shall prevail"._

Every senator in the Senate chambers clapped after their Emperor was finished speaking, and every Stormtrooper in the mess hall cheered for Palpatine.

Everyone then piled out of the mess hall, after second helpings, and went back to their unit's tents. The Jokers were back in their tent. Potorr was standing upside down on his hands and pushing himself up and down. Gistang was disassembling her launcher and cleaning every bit. Karr was sharpening his Mandalorian blade, which he started attaching to the end of his rifle like a bayonet, instead of the usual laser bayonets. Trask, on the other hand was writing a letter to his Fiancé. He wrote about how he met his team and that he promised that he would be back in time for them to get married.

Almost every soldier believed that they were going to crush the UNSC and conquer the Sol system in a matter of weeks. Sgt Harkas, being a veteran of several campaigns against insurgents, on the other hand wasn't sure. He had full confidence in the empire's abilities, but he couldn't help but act, or rather look, slightly pessimistic.

 _I have a bad feeling about this_ , Harkas thought to himself as the sound went out over the camp that signaled the "light's out" order.

Everyone in the camp went to bed with thoughts of glory and victory in their heads. Of coarse, War has never been forgiving to it's subjects.

 _ **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**_

 **August 11th, 2561 (UNSC military calendar), Inner Colony World: New Seoul, UNSC Marine Corps military base, designation: Fort Macarthur.**

Storm clouds were on the horizon. Not actual storm clouds, because it was actually quite nice out in this part of New Seoul. PVT. Jack Mitchell of the UNSC Marine Corps, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, 7th Division, 11th regiment, 4th Battalion, Sentinel Platoon, knew that to be true.

The type of storm he was thinking about required much more than a mere umbrella. It was war, right around the corner. But he could't think about that right know. He was on the range with three of his five teammates: PVT. Will Irons, PVT Paul Jackson, and Lance corporal Tyler Daniels.

Mitchell was dressed up in his digital camouflaged uniform, which was colored the same way as the jungles of New Seoul, with a dark green, brown, and black color pattern. His uniform also had a velcro strap that had his name on it. He was also wearing a cap instead of a helmet at the moment. He had a UNSC emblem on his cap, and sense he was an American, like most members of the 1st MEF, he had an American Flag on his uniform's shoulders. The flag had changed over the centuries to include a yellow snake sprawled across the red and white stripes, with the yellow colored words _Don't Tread On Me_ sewn into the red stripes of the Flag **(N/A:If you're an American like me, look me in the eye and tell me that wouldn't be an awesome addition to the flag).** He also had a silver cross around his neck which he kissed every now and then with a quick prayer.

In his hands was a black colored piece of iron and plastic. He was clutching a BR-55 battle rifle in his gloved hands. his safety was off and his fingers was outside of the trigger guard. He liked the older rifle better. The more recent silver model of the Battle rifle never really grew on him or anyone in the military really **(N/A: hey 343, bring back the classic art style, would ya?).**

He pointed his weapon down range and flipped the safety off and switched it to semi-auto. His rifle was now live. He sighted up his target and controlled his breathing very carefully to keep the rifle steady. His targets, were a set of paper cut outs of Imperial stormtroopers (some in cover and some not).

He scanned his targets from left to right very quickly started putting 9.5x40MM armor piercing rounds down range. When he ran out of ammo, he ejected the magazine, placed the fallen mag on the table in front of him, flipped the safety, pulled his finger out of the trigger guard and placed his rifle over his chest.

He looked at his handy work and found a tight grouping of nine bullet holes in the chest or heads of each of his four paper victims. "Nice shooting man," Jackson said complementing Mitchell's deadly efficiency with a rifle.

"yeah, nice work bro," Irons said to his old platoon mate. Mitchell and Irons' were bunkmates in boot camp. They got out six months prior.

"You got it right this time. But remember that paper doesn't shoot back," Daniels said, down playing the praise that Mitchell was receiving.

"Oh what, the Empire does? News flash Daniels, their troopers can't hit anything," Mitchell joked.

"Perhaps, but I would like to remind you that anyone of those Imperial shit-bags who point a weapon at you is bound to hit one of you idiots, and that makes him a threat, not to mention the fact that we are outnumbered 1000-1," Denials said to the three young privates in the team.

"Then I guess we're each gonna have to kill 1000 stormmies (slang for stormtroopers)," Irons countered. "I'll be sure to kill 1001 just to be sure," Jackson said, being his smart-ass self. Everyone of the three privates chuckled.

"Daniels is right," a new voice said from behind the team. The voice belonged to Staff Sergeant Jason Knox, who walked into the range with the squad's medic, Corporal Morgan "Doc" Holiday.

Knox was a Marine Veteran from the final years of the Human-Covenant War. The dark colored Marine looked as if he were in his late forties and had the signs of a man who's seen some serious action. Doc Holiday had the strongest build in the squad **(N/A: In the US military the medics are usually the strongest members to carry all the extra gear)** but wasn't quite a brick shit house.

"Never for one God Damn second do I want to hear you underestimate your enemies, Am I understood?" Knox asked. "Sir, Yes Sir," everyone shouted. "Know listen up you worthless maggots. Our Enemy is the Batarian Hegemony. They have launched terrorists attacks on our outer colonies because of a territorial dispute along the frontier," Knox said explaining the situation.

"The only reason that we haven't torn those ugly four-eyed fuckers a new asshole bigger than the grand canyon is because of the Galactic Empire. The Batarians want to snipe from behind their big brother like a bunch of pussies. As for the Empire, you insubordinate morons are right for once. They may not be the most competent soldiers, but the Empire has a limitless supply of warships, resources, soldiers, and equipment. That being said, the UNSC Marine Corps is the meanest, most highly motivated, and well trained bunch of badasses in the galaxy, and we will prevail the way we did against the Covenant, the Galactic Republic, and the Citadel races. You feeling me?"

"Aye Sir," the squad said in unison, responding to Knox's motivating speech.

"Good, know head for the chow hall and SHUT THE FUCK UP," Knox ordered. The team then went to the mess hall where the rest of the company was sitting down for a nice meal.

The mess hall was a generic mess hall used by any military. The walls were gray, as well as the tables and the columns that held up the ceiling. The walls had a few posters on them here and there. They were mostly motivational posters and advertisements for upcoming events, like the comedian that would be coming over soon. There were a few propaganda posters, but nothing that like what the Imperial mess halls were rumored to have. Unlike the Empire, UNSC servicemen and women didn't need motivation to fight. Most people reasoned that the Empire was fighting for an emperor and the list ended there. The servicemen of the UNSC on the other hand would be fighting for their home worlds, their families, and the freedoms and life styles that so many people took for granted.

Each Squad member went to the kiosks on the wall and pressed a button to receive the meal and drink that each Marine preferred **(N/A: look on the walls of the mess hall in the Halo CE mission Pillar of Autumn to see what i'm describing).**

When each member of the squad got what they ordered, they all sat down at an empty table. Everyone began to dig into their meals and make small talk.

"So Will, how's the wife and kids?" Mitchell asked his closest friend, while looking at the wedding band on Irons' left hand. Irons looked up from his meal towards his squadmate. "Jennifer's doing good. She just entered the third trimester. And girls are doing fine. They've been visiting my folks' home a lot lately".

"It must be crazy that your kids get to run around a mansion all day in the summers," Mitchell said. Will's father, Jonathan Irons was an Army veteran who founded the Atlas Corporation, which specialized in creating guidance systems for UNSC missile technology. It made his family quite wealthy in recent years.

"Yeah, I know I don't always see eye to eye with my old man, but I know that they're in good hands with him". Mitchell nodded and pulled out his letter that he wanted to write his girlfriend, who was in the UNSC Air Force. The two of them actually met on a mission along time ago when she was shot down and he had to rescue her. It was the beginning of a wonderful relationship. He started to write down a few things when suddenly he was interrupted.

"Atten-Tion," shouted a loud voice at the entrance to the mess. "Officer on deck". Everyone in the mess stopped what they were doing and stood tall and straight at attention. Then a figure with Marine Corps Digital Camo and an officer's cap walked in.

"Gopher balls, it's Colonel Hardaway," Jackson silently exclaimed, referring to the dark skinned Marine Veteran that walked in.

"Ok Marines, listen up. I know how much you all love a good show. Which is why I have a little something from the President of the UEG to show all of you". The Marine Colonel nodded towards a Corporal that turned on a large TV monitor. It flickered on and a few minutes later, the President himself was present, about to give an address to the UEG and its colonies.

Montaine took a breath and spoke.

 _"Citizens of the Sol system and it's colonies. My fellow patriots. As you all know, tensions with the Sith Empire have been at an all time high, and I would like to let you all know that we are most likely going to be at war within the week. I understand that this will be a difficult challenge. But we have faced far worse at the hands of the Covenant, and we survived, so we will do it again. The Emperor himself, has proclaimed to his people that we are an aggressive colonial power that started this crisis. Nothing could be further from the truth. While the Emperor's jackboots march over and ruin innocent lives, he has accused us of starting this war. Despite all of our peaceful efforts, it has come to my attention that there can be no negotiations with a dictator like this, no compromise, and no political deals. To the people of the Empire and it's allies, know this: you are not our enemy, but as your leaders draw you into a conflict of their own making, understand that we must and will do what we must do to protect our people and interests. If they insist on fighting, then we will show them the same mercy that they've shown others. We have done everything to make peace with the Empire and it's allies. But all the while, the Emperor and his puppets have looked upon our home worlds with envy, planning to seize by force, what they cannot claim by right. I want every serviceman and woman in our Armed forces to understand that billions of your fellow man are behind you and God is with us. Against those odds what hope does the Empire have. The time for friendship and dialog may have passed, and the time for fighting may soon come. The Emperor and his puppets must know that our people can be loyal allies, but fierce and unforgiving foes"._

With that, the President's speech was over and the TV screen flashed off.

Chatter broke out across the mess in response to Montine's speech.

Hardaway spoke, his voice shutting down all conversation.

"OK Marines, I understand that we are all a little worried. But we have been trained for this very type of situation. I know that we may be in over our heads, BUT WE ARE UNSC MARINES. Our organization goes all the way back to the founding of the US Marine Corps in 1775. For nearly eight centuries, we have defined the standards of courage, spirit, and military prowess. We will stand tall in the face of this new threat and fight those fuckers all the way back to Coruscant. Do you feel me?"

Every Marine responded in unison to Hardaway's speech. "URRAH".

"Are you ready to look death straight in the eye and bitch slap him across the face?" Hardaway asked, "URRAH," the Marines shouted.

"Outstanding you Jarhead sons of bitches, now get ready, 'cause we are going to make them wish that they died quickly".

Mitchell looked down at his letter to his girlfriend, the men around him, and then at the cross around his neck. He then started to think that everything was going to be OK.


	4. Chapter 4-It begins

**Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.**

 _This will be the fifth main chapter of my story, They Shall Not Pass. It will, along with the next chapter or so, focus on the opening battle of the war and the characters that have so far been established._

 _One of you asked me where the Master chief and the other spartans were in this story. I will put Chief and the other Spartan II's (and maybe the III's) in later chapters. I wanted to focus on the Marines and stormtroopers first because they are always the first ones in._

 _In Halo, Spartans are usually sent in after the Marines. The same logic applies here._

 _And if you're looking for some sweet Cmdr. Palmer/Team Osiris/spartan IV action, then please X out right now, because I will only disappoint you._

 ** _also, i'm making a slight change in the star wars timeline, in a previous chapter it said that this story takes place in 13 BBY, i'm changing it to 11 BBY._**

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **Imperial Star-Destroyer Relentless/en route to UEG colony world: New Seoul/11 BBY**

Aboard the Imperial Star Destroyer _Relentless_ , Governor Pryce looked out the the viewport into the endless blue tunnel of hyperspace.

Their mission: Demand the surrender of all UNSC forces and crush them if they resist.

Agent Kallus of the ISB (Imperial Security Bereau), and Admiral Konstantine of the Imperial Navy flanked Pryce on either side of her.

The pale skinned woman with black hair could not help but feel amused by the idea of a small entity, such as the UEG, would ever dare challenge the might of the Empire.

The words suicidal and foolish usually came to mind when it came to the UEG and its pitiful colonies.

"Konstantine, tell me. What is the status of our operation across the frontier?" the Governor asked.

The Relentless and its battlegroup made up one of several forward echelons of the Imperial invasion force. The rear echelons were focusing on the small settlements along the frontier.

The Empire wanted to conquer the Skylian Verge for the Batarians, while the Empire crushed the Outer Colonies in a show of force.

"Madam Governor, reports suggest that the Skylian Verge is now under our total control. Our rear forces have just finished routing the UNSC's local garrisons, and the local militia," the politician admiral stated.

Pryce stoffed.

"That is it. We are fighting nothing more than peasants, farmers, and unmotivated poverty stricken soldiers. If that is what they have the decency of being called," Pryce said.

"I don't think that we are in the clear yet, Governor," said the blond headed, and bearded, Agent Kallus.

"Do you doubt the abilities of our Emperor's military, Agent Kallus?" Konstaintine asked, with both he and Pryce staring at Kallus.

The young agent took a defensive posture and spoke up.

"No. But I believe that we are underestimating the abilities of the UNSC. They are apart of a species that claims to have battled extinction. I don't think that they will give up so easily," Kallus explained.

"They will bow before our Emperor, if they value their pitiful lives.

The voice belonged to another figure, who approached from behind the three Imperial officers.

It was Starkiller. The current Grand Inquisitor of the Knights of Ren, and former apprentice to Darth Vader himself.

The Human with buzz cut black hair, and clad in black armor, halted right next to them.

"Agent Kallus. These terrans (the name that the Empire gave to any human in the milky way galaxy) are nothing. They're less than nothing. We will crush them quickly and with ease. And if they don't do it right away, then they are begging for their own destruction," Starkiller said.

The Inquisitor turned towards him with a frown.

"Do you understand, Kallus?" Starkiller said.

Kallus bowed to the Inquisitor. "Yes Grand Inquisitor".

"Sirs, we are entering the system, and are about to exit hyperspace," a young lieutenant said.

"Ah, the show is about to begin," said Konstantine, while he turned to the viewport.

The ships exited hyperspace to the sight of 42 UNSC warships. All of them were neatly lined up in front of the target planet: New Seoul.

Both fleets faced each other. The Empire had 60 warships, 18 more ships than the UNSC fleet, as well as more larger warships.

The UNSC fleet had a few heavy battlecruisers, but the fleet was supplemented mostly by smaller warships, such as frigates and destroyers.

The UNSC warships were a dark grayish color and they looked blocky, as opposed to the lighter colored and more triangular Imperial warships.

One thing was for sure. There ships were made for one thing: War.

"Open up a comm channel to the enemy fleet," Pryce ordered.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **UNSC Refitted Halcyon class battlecruiser, Dawn under Heaven. Flagship of VADM. Frederick Marcus.**

VADM. Marcus looked out over the endless black void of space from the bridge of his new, or rather old, warship.

The Dawn Under Heaven was a refitted cruiser from the Human-Covenant War.

It was slated for the scrap heap when it ended. But the Government figured that with this new and dangerous galaxy, the military could use every hull that it could get its hands on.

So the _Heaven_ was refitted and upgraded to have the new tech of the modern day. At first glance, it looked like an Autumn class cruiser, but it was really an old Halcyon class Cruiser, which was the inspiration for the Autumn class.

Marcus liked that the older ships were being refitted and called back into service.

 _The newer classes look like piles of shit compared to the good ol' ships of the day,_ the balding veteran thought to himself **(N/A: in case you guys didn't figure it out yet, I hate the new art style that 343 is using)**.

"It looks peaceful doesn't it Lieutenant?" Marcus asked the ship's navigational officer.

"Yes sir," the Lieutenant said to the veteran naval officer.

"Ah, but looks can be deceiving. For beyond those stars, a monster is approaching. A monster that will not stop until its hunger for power is satisfied. Or until we stomp its guts out," Marcus explained.

"Do you actually believe that we can defeat them sir?" The young officer asked.

"I don't believe that we will defeat them. I know that we will defeat them," Marcus said.

The Lieutenant shot the Admiral a look of confusion.

"But sir, we are outnumbered 40-1. And that's just counting the Empire. There's no telling what odds we'll be up against if their allies show up," the Lieutenant explained.

The Admiral looked at the LT with a look that could pierce spartan armor.

"Son, what's wrong with you?"

"Uhm, Sir?"

"Don't 'Uhm sir' me. Do you even know your history? What the hell do they teach in school these days?" The Admiral said, drawing in a few looks from the ship's crew.

The officer was tight lipped. He didn't know what to say.

"The Covenant outnumbered us, and they were more technologically superior to the Empire. Yet, we fought them to the very end. Not only that, but the Covenant collapsed and we survived. The same fate awaits the Empire and we're gonna make them pay for every inch of land that they've stolen from us. Mark my words," Marcus said.

"Yes sir," the young officer said.

The ships scanners went off. "Sir, enemy contacts entering the system".

"All hands, battle stations," Marcus ordered.

Out of nowhere, dozens of Imperial warships shot into the system.

"Sir they're hailing us," The comm officer said.

"On screen." the ship's captain, Jonathan Edwards ordered.

Suddenly, the ship's view screen showed a pale, middle aged woman with black hair and pale eyes.

Behind her were two imperial officers and one of those evil wizards.

Before the woman could speak, Admiral Marcus spoke first, showing that he was anything but amused, or timid.

"I'll take a box of coconut cookies, and two boxes of thin mints," ADM Marcus said, frowning with his arms crossed over his chest.

The Imperial officer was thrown off from his comment. She just stared for a moment without saying a word.

The bridge crew had to force themselves not to laugh. That was classic Marcus. No fucks were given in the making of his career.

"Did you just ask me for cookies?" Governor Pryce asked.

"Yeah. And while your at it, why don't you get me a glass of milk from those two jugs on your chest?" Marcus said abruptly.

Everyone on the bridge lost it and laughed, leaving Pryce humiliated and disgusted. She took a step back and placed her fingertips near her chest, clearly offended.

"Why, I'd never-". She regained what was left of her dignity, and gathered her composure. "Listen to me, Terran scum. You are enemies of the Empire. We are here to bring justice to those who trampled on the rights of the Batarian people. We are here to liberate your-".

"Shut your trap you dumb broad," Marcus said, cutting her off, without a care in the world.

Pryce, who was now royally pissed off, looked like she wanted to punch Marcus through the screen.

"I know why you're here. You're here because that senile old fart, that you call a leader, told your brainwashed asses to waste your worthless lives here, for a bunch of four-eyed freaks, who've slaughtered or enslaved hundreds of our people," Marcus said.

"We were willing to negotiate with you, Terran pigs. But that is obviously impossible," Pryce said.

"You propped up a terrorist regime, invaded our soil, and killed thousands of our people already. Do the fucking math, you dumb witch. It was impossible from the start. And let me tell you something else. Everyone may be willing to fondle your Emperor's tiny little nut sack. But we on the other hand, are ready rip out your empty skulls and beat the shit out of you with them. For everyone one of our people that you've slaughtered already, we will make you pay with 100 of yours. If we're feeling generous that is, which I am not," Marcus said to the flabbergasted woman on screen.

Marcus continued.

"If you think that we are afraid of you? You are gravely mistaken. We battled extinction, and extinction lost. We will be more frightful than even your worst nightmares. And when we are done ripping your spines out of your asses, we will be coming for you, and your four-eyed pets to. If you think otherwise, then you can come here and show me," Marcus said.

With that, everyone on the _Dawn under Heaven_ 's bridge stood up and shouted defiantly in unison. "URRAH!"

"You insolent fools. How dare you defy our Empire. And insult our gloriuos leader. We will crush you for this," Pryce said, her fists balled tightly.

"I'll try to act impressed. Marcus out," With that, the feed was cut.

Everyone on the _Heaven_ 's bridge, and the rest of the fleet that was watching, smiled at their defiant Admiral.

"Well don't just sit there. Let's get moving. We have a war to win and an new enemy to kick the shit out of," Marcus said, as the bridge crew turned back to their stations.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Back on the _Relentless_ , Governor Pryce was fuming with rage. She had just been humiliated by what most people in the Imperial Command would consider a peasant soldier.

She turned towards Konstantine.

"Admiral. I want you to destroy that fleet right now. They will pay for humiliating our Empire," Pryce demanded.

Agent Kallus wondered. _Which are you really upset about? The Empire's humiliation, or yours_.

"Yes Governor," the Admiral stated.

The Admiral went to the holo-table to issue fleet wide orders.

"All Imperial warships. This is the Admiral. Advance. Wedged formation. Pick your targets, and fire when ready," Konstantine ordered.

Every Imperial warship in the fleet slowly advanced in a wedge formation. Their imposing stature clearly evident. The pointy hulled ships advanced with their shields fully charged.

The UNSC warships got bigger and bigger in the viewports of every Imperial ship, as they drew closer to the enemies of the Emperor.

Most Imperial officers were taught that the Empire was the most feared force in the galaxy.

They were taught that no one could defeat them, and that their enemies would always flee at the first sign of trouble.

For the most part, that was true. But most of the Empire's enemies were just an unarmed freighter running off with stolen or illegal goods.

They were used to their prey running or simply surrendering with out a fight.

But to the surprise of everyone, the UNSC ships advanced to meet the Empire in battle.

"Sir, we are almost in range," called out one Imperial officer.

"Good. Make ready to fire. This will be over a a few moments," Konstantine said.

Kallus couldn't tell if he was being confident, or just arrogant. His answer was given to him seconds later.

The bows of each UNSC warship began to glow yellow.

"Sir, I am picking up a strange anomaly at the front of each ship. I believe that they are making ready to fire," the officer said with concern.

Konstantine laughed.

"They are armed with projectiles. They are primitive. Let them come. They will barely scratch our armor," Konstantine said.

 _Yup, definitely arrogance_.

"Admiral, I believe that we should still take evasive maneuvers," Kallus suggested.

Before the smirking Admiral could speak, the bows of each UNSC warship exploded. An instant later, a metallic projectile was magnetically propelled from every UNSC ship, towards the Imperial ships.

Each of the 42 yellow streaked projectiles approached the Imperial fleet at a fraction of the speed of light.

Before the Imperial ships could react, the projectiles collided with the Empire's ships.

These were the UNSC's most powerful weapon, outside of a nuclear device. A Magnetic Accelerator Cannon, or MAC. The projectiles were propelled by magnets in the UNSC ships to push the rounds. The rounds could only fly straight, but they travelled so fast that accuracy usually wasn't a problem.

The MAC rounds hit the Imperial fleet. The smaller Imperial ships never stood a chance, as several light cruisers and frigates were gutted from stem to stern, and were lit up in a brilliant Explosion.

The smaller shells just bounced off of the shields of the large Star-Destroyers. But they did enough damage to bring down the shields of the 1600 meter behemoths.

The aftermath of the damage showed the Empire the destructive capabilities of the UNSC Navy.

The Relentless itself, took a direct hit from three UNSC frigates. The ship shuddered under the force of the kinetic barrage.

Several crew members were throw to the deck, and several other figures, even the Grand Inquisitor, had to struggle to stay on their feet.

"Report! What's the damage?" Konstantine shouted.

One Imperial officer mustered the courage to speak up.

"Uh, Sir. We've lost five warships. Eight more are badly damaged. At least twenty of our vessels are reporting heavy drainage in their shields, or no shields at all," the officer explained.

Another officer spoke up.

"Admiral. We have suffered damage to our shields. They are down to 35%," the officer said.

The arrogant smirk on Konstantine's face from earlier had completely disappeared from his mustached face. It was replaced by surprised anger, with a hint of fear.

Everyone on the bridge looked to the Admiral and the Governor for guidance.

They had all been taught that the Empire was unbeatable. The fact that they've been punched in the gut this way, by people that they were told were primitive peasants no less, was such a foreign concept.

Even Konstantine was perplexed as to what to do next.

All of a sudden, a scanning operator yelled out.

"Sir they are powering up their rail-guns again," the young operator shouted.

 _All ready? How is that possible?_

"Get us out of range of those guns. Right now," Konstantine ordered.

On the Admiral's orders, every ship in the fleet turned back the way they came, frantically trying to get away from the UNSC warships.

The Imperial warships moved at full speed.

They were just about to make it out of range of the UNSC guns.

That's when the UNSC fleet fired it's second volley.

Once again, 42 yellow streaks burst forth from the bows of the UNSC warships.

The 42 MAC shells crossed the threshold which divided the UNSC and Imperial Navies.

Many of the shells missed this time, but the Imperial warships were still recovering from the first volley of shells.

The shells that did hit were more devastating this time.

This time, seven more warships were destroyed and about ten more were damaged.

The _Relentless_ was spared, but two star destroyers were not so lucky.

One star-destroyer, the _Kestrel_ , was hit by two shells. Both of which hit the bridge superstructure. The bridge tower lit up like an Empire day celebration. The rest of the ship drifted lifelessly into space as the crew rushed to the escape pods.

The other star destroyer, the _Invincible_ , took a hit from the UNSC flagship itself. The larger shell fired from the _Dawn under Heave_ n's railgun struck the underside of the ship.

The whole scene was in plain view of the _Relentless_ 's bridge crew.

Kallus watched as the shell pierced through the unshielded hull, gutting the main reactor, which was located below the front of the bridge tower.

The main reactor ignited. The explosion was as powerful as it was beautiful. It disintegrated the aft section of the ship and the force of the blast caused the bridge superstructure to be pushed away.

It also propelled the bow section into a nearby Nebulae B-class frigate. The bow cleaved right through the skinny spinal section that connected the bow and aft sections, life a knife chopping a piece of celery.

The Imperial fleet has now dropped from 60 ships to 48 ships, a third of which had suffered hull damage of some kind.

The Empire had not even fired a shot and it had already suffered the most humiliating blow in recent memory.

"Sir. We are out of range of their cannons," one officer said.

"Admiral, we are being hailed. It's the UNSC flagship," The Comm officer said.

Pryce balled her hands into tight fists. She obviously didn't feel like hearing that UNSC pig speak.

"On screen," Konstantine ordered.

The monitor revealed the face of ADM. Marcus. The UNSC veteran stood tall with his arms over his chest.

"I don't really feel like hearing you gloat," Konstantine said.

"Too bad. Listen to me Imperial scum. What you saw was a taste of our power. I ask that you turn your vessels around and exit UNSC space where we can negotiate the terms of your withdraw from the galaxy at a later date," Marcus said.

"Are you serious? Do you know how many of our ships you've destroyed? Surely you must be mad," Konstantine said.

"Yes. 12. And possibly," Marcus said, smarting off. "But that doesn't change the situation or our demands".

"How dare you. We will destroy every last one of you for this," Konstantine threatened.

"Feel free to try. But remember that our offer still stands. Marcus out," Marcus said as the screen flickered off.

Pryce, who was still pissed, turned to the comm officer.

"Contact all squadron leaders and tell them to gather their pilots and get to their ships," Pryce ordered.

"Yes Governor," the officer replied.

Konstantine turned to the ship's captain.

"Send a signal to our reserve fleets and tell them to join us at these co-ordinates," the Admiral ordered. The captain threw up a salute.

"Right away Admiral," the captain said.

Agent Kallus then saw Starkiller leaving the bridge.

"Grand Inquisitor, where are you going?" Kallus asked.

The Inquisitor turned to the agent.

"I'm going to lead the fighter squadrons. The UNSC will pay for their arrogance," Starkiller said before he turned towards the door on his way to the hanger.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _UNSC flagship, Dawn under Heaven, New Seoul_.

"Sir, enemy fighters are incoming," an ensign called out.

Dozens of Imperial Tie fighters flew towards the UNSC fleet in menacing waves.

"Launch all fighters and tell them to engage. And light those bastards up with everything you've got," Marcus ordered.

Across the entire UNSC fleet, hundreds of 50mm point defense cannons cut loose with everything they had.

The cannons were made for this type of situation. The best part is that the Tie fighters had no shielding. So the Imperials took heavy casaulties flying through a thick and murderous wall of heavy cannon fire.

However, the Empire had seemingly endless waves of fighters heading their way. The UNSC fleet only had a few squadrons.

Nevertheless, the outnumbered (but not outmatched) UNSC Broadswords and Longswords from the Fleets moderately sized contingent of fighters flew fearlessly towards the next wave of Imperial fighters.

This wave was different however. Instead of fighters, they were actually interceptors and strikers.

The UNSC ships fired their missiles at the new wave of fighters.

Their missiles crossed the threshold and detonated when they found a target. They managed to take out 40% of the 2nd wave.

It was about to get up close and personal.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Starkiller flew his advanced Tie fighter into battle.

So far, the UNSC has managed to impress him.

 _If they can humble an arrogant and elitist Imperial officer, then they have earned my respect_.

He expertly piloted his fighter through the storm of flak with the rest of the surviving Imperial pilots to do battle with the UNSC pilots.

Both sides were caught in a deadly dance for star-fighter supremacy.

Stragglier swooped down fired his dual cannons at a pair of UNSC longswords, destroying them from above.

One UNSC Broadsword managed to tail him and fire his auto cannon at him.

He maneuvered and swerved to avoid the tiny projectiles.

 _He's not using missiles. He must be out of them. Good_.

Starkiller pulled a 180 degree turned and fired his cannons at the UNSC jet. It exploded in a ball of fire.

"Grand Inquisitor. We've managed to destroy the majority of the UNSC fighters, and the third wave is on its way," said Major Fel of the 181st.

"Good. Make sure those bombers make it through. We have a fleet to destroy," Starkiller ordered.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Imperial flagship, Relentless_.

The Imperial reinforcements had just arrived in system to join the fleet.

30 warships were added to the 32 undamaged ships. The severely damaged ships limped away from the system.

Konstantine and Pryce stood at the viewport watching the battle from afar.

"Soon we will finally destroy these vermin," Pryce said.

"Indeed Governor," Konstantine said.

He then turned to the comm officer.

"Send in those tie bombers. Swarm their fleet," he ordered.

"Yes sir," the officer said.

"All ships. This is the Admiral. Advance. Destroy their fleet in the name of our great leader," Konstantine ordered.

The UNSC will soon know to fear the Empire.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

The Imperial tie bombers swarmed over the UNSC fleet.

They destroyed several UNSC vessels and severely damaged over a dozen others.

The Imperial fighters were still taking heavy losses as they continued swarming the fleet, even without fighter opposition.

The Imperial fleet advanced while the UNSC ships were distracted.

They were finally in range to open fire.

Green lasers fired from the heavy cannons of the Imperial warships.

They all streaked towards the UNSC ships.

UNSC ships took heavy damage, but they stood their ground.

The remaining ships fired their MAC rounds at the Imperial warships. At point blank range, they couldn't miss.

Nearly 30 UNSC ships fired their cannons at the Imperial ships and got results that were devastating for the Imperial fleet.

Another 15 Imperial warships were destroyed and 8 more were damaged.

At this range, the UNSC warships couldn't use their MAC's because it would cause severe damage to their own ships.

Instead, the UNSC ships resorted to using their missile pods, close range deck guns, and even their point-defense AA turrets.

Warships from both sides hammered away at each other. The scene was reminiscent of an old fashioned naval brawl from the Second World War back on Earth.

Konstantin watched from the bridge of the _Relentless._

He smiled as the UNSC ships started to fall one by one under the weight of the Imperial onslaught.

However, the was still underestimating the resolve of the UNSC.

Back on the Heaven, ADM Marcus shouted orders on a fleet wide channel.

"Attention all UNSC ships, pick your targets and fire at will. Use your MACs if you have to," Marcus ordered.

Some UNSC ships that were overrun used their MACs at close range. They took out the ships that they were targeting as well as themselves.

One Paris-class heavy Frigate that had taken too much damage used what was left of its power to speed towards an Imperial light cruiser.

The Imperial ship desperately fired everything it had at the charging frigate. But to no avail.

The heavy frigate moved forward and rammed into the Imperial cruiser.

It penetrated the hull and both ships exploded into a temporary star.

That wasn't the end of the chaos.

One UNSC destroyer did something similar, but this time its target was a Star-Destroyer. The under 600 meter destroyer collided with the 1600 meter behemoth.

Instead of piercing the core like the other ship from earlier, the moderately sized UNSC ship tangled with the Star Destroyer's bridge superstructure, firing its MAC gun at point blank range (Or as Sarge would put in: face stabbing range).

Both ships were wiped out in the explosion.

Both sides continued to hammer away at each other from close range.

The number of ships continued to dwindle until only 9 UNSC ships, and just over 40 Imperial ships remained.

Pryce turned toward the comms officer.

"Hail the UNSC flagship. I want to see how he reacts to the turning tides," Pryce said with a smirk.

"Yes Governor," the young officer said.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Back aboard the Dawn under Heaven, Marcus was faced with the fact that he was now staring down the bows of 40 Imperial ships.

"Status," Marcus called out.

"Sir. We're down to 9 ships. The _Heaven_ , 5 destroyers, and 3 heavy frigates," the ensign said.

"Sir. We're being hailed," the comm officer called out.

The screen on the Heaven's bridge turned on showing the face of the Imperial Governor that he embarrassed earlier.

"You again? Where the hell are my cookies? My kid's birthday is tomorrow. Chop chop," Marcus said while clapping his hands, mocking the Governor again.

The Governor just stared at Marcus before speaking.

"I'm afraid that they are running late. And I'm also afraid that you will not be going to your child's pathetic birthday ritual," Pryce said.

Marcus looked at the screen with a scowl as she spoke.

"Wow, your childhood must've sucked," Marcus said, still trying to get a rise out of her.

Pryce seemed to become really good a ignoring in the last few hours.

"Surrender yourselves to me, or be destroyed," Pryce ordered.

Marcus gave a hand signal to the navigations officer at the front of the bridge.

The Lt turned around and punched in something on his terminal.

"What is your answer Admiral?" Pryce demanded.

"Go 'ta Hell!" Marcus said uttering famous last words.

"So be it," Pryce said.

Every Imperial warships pointed their weapons at the remaining UNSC vessels.

"Say good night, Terran scum!" Pryce said just before the Imperial ships fired.

"NOW!" Marcus shouted.

All of a sudden, a blue disk was torn into the fabric of space and time, just in front of each UNSC ship.

The UNSC ships passed through the disks and travelled into slip-space away from UNSC space.

The ships didn't actually leave the system. But they did jump into a nearby nebula at the edge of an asteroid belt in the system.

"Alright everyone. We'll hunker down here for a while. When the time is right, we're gonna help our boys on the ground. Until then, it's the Marine Corps' show right now.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Back on the ISD Relentless, Pryce was fuming slightly.

"Are you alright Governor? Should we follow them?" Konstantin asked.

"No. They are not our mission. The planet is. Tell Starkiller and his inquisitors to prepare for ground assault," Pryce ordered.

Konstantine saluted Pryce and walked away.

 _It's finally time to show the terrains the reason why they should fear us_.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Beneath the atmosphere of the planet, the 181st Tie fighter squadron was dogfighting in the skies above New Seoul.

In the cockpit of his Tie Interceptor, Major Fel adjusted a picture of his wife and family before putting his mind back on the fight that he was about to enter.

"Alright everyone. Pick your targets and fire when ready. We need to clear a path for our bombers," Fel ordered.

"Yes Sir," everyone said at the same time into their comms.

The Tie fighters dueled with the UNSC Air Force above the city.

At the same time, dozens of Imperial Tie Bombers flew over the city, ready to rain down death and destruction.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Down in the New Seoul's famous Rhee Park. A UNSC Marine Lieutenant was giving orders to a platoon of wolverines.

They were basically large trucks that were armed with AA rocket launchers.

The Lt saw the tie bombers from a distance and turned to the Wolverines behind him.

"Swat those fuckers out of the sky!" the LT shouted.

The wolverine's pointed their missile batteries at the approaching bombers.

They each fired a pair of missiles. The projectiles flew towards the bombers and destroyed several of them. But there was just to many of them.

The remaining bombers, of which there were many, dropped their payload onto the city below them. They carpet bombed the city's defenses, leaving the frontline with hundreds of craters and casualties in the bomber's wake.

Imperial ground forces had to contend with surprisingly stubborn UNSC Marine defenders, who dug trenches in the forested area on the outskirts of New Seoul.

Stormtroopers met face to face with their Marine counterparts and engaged in brutal close quarters combat. White armored and digital camouflaged figures took part in the deadly art of Trench warfare in a forest.

Nearby, Imperial Hover tanks and UNSC M808B Scorpions engaged one another almost barrel to barrel.

The Empire had numbers on their side, but the UNSC had experience on their side.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Far from the city, the Empire was setting up outposts all over the place. They were dropped off by Imperial warships in orbit.

Bases like these were the way the Empire was able to deploy it's heavy equipment.

Many of the heavy transports bringing down the heavy artillery were shot down, or destroyed on the ground by UNSC ICBM's launched from hardened Silo's all over the continent. Some of the ICBM's were coming from a mountain fortress known as Fort MacArthur.

The bases were also being spied on by teams of highly trained UNSC snipers.

These teams called in heavy firepower to destroy the heavy transports before they could unload the Imperial war machine.

High above the planet, the still powerful Imperial fleet rained down fire onto any target that they could.

The first ground battle between the UNSC and Empire has begun.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

That's chapter 5 folks.

sorry it took so long. I'm working on some other stories.

the next one will be the battle for the city itself and fort MacArthur.

until then, enjoy.

This is Grubkiller, over and out.


	5. Chapter 5-Where do you stand?

**Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.**

 **hey folks, this is my newest chapter in my star wars/halo crossover (with just a slight tweak).**

 **It will focus on the UNSC and Swords of Sanghelios negotiating on their next move, while the ground war on New Seoul is in full swing.**

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Sol system, UNSC colony Luna, the moon of Humanity's home world_.

Space. An endless black ocean of stars, nebulas, black holes, and constellations.

It was still being explored and studied by the curious eyes of mankind.

Long ago, when humanity was still bound by the atmosphere of its cradle world, scientists looked to the stars. They believed that it was mankind's sacred duty to conquer the mysteries of the universe.

Bursting the chains that bound them to earth asunder was the first major step.

In the 20th century during a cold war, between two competing superpowers, the Free-Market United States and the Marxist Soviet Union, mankind did just that.

During the scientific, as well as military, competition between the two idealogical superpowers, humanity was able to break free of the atmosphere and, as American President Ronald Reagan once said, touch the face of God.

The United States became the first nation to set foot on Earth's moon.

That same moon was now the location for humanity's first extra planetary colony.

Its name was Luna. High above Luna, the outer perimeter of the UNSC home fleet's blockade of Humanity's Home world stood by. They were ready to fight to the death to protect the Sol system from anything that entered it.

In a military base not far from the main colony, the most powerful military figure in human space looked out of the shielded window into the black void of space, contemplating.

That man was Lord Hood, Fleet Admiral of the Home Fleet, and CINC of both the UNSC Navy, and in times of war, the UNSC's emergency military government.

During the Human-Covenant War, the UNSC stepped in to run humanity's war effort against the covenant. This time against the Sith Empire was no different.

Hood led the defense of Earth at the end of the war, when the covenant finally found it.

 _Could I be the one who's in charge if the Empire breaks through? What if they break through and take Earth? Will I become the most hated man in history?_

Whatever Hood was thinking about, he couldn't let himself be distracted by 'what ifs'. Only on 'what now'.

Lord Hood turned around to see the holographic version of Thel Vadam, the Arbiter of Sangheilios, Earth's greatest ally.

"Arbiter. It's good to see you old friend. I only wish that it was under better circumstances," Hood said in his Ron Perlman voice.

Thel Vadam gave a slight nod of respect.

"Like wise. What is it that you require?" The Arbiter said softly, yet un-softly, in his Keith David-ish voice.

"Thel, I'm not going to lie to you. We're neck deep with a deflated life reserve and surrounded by sharks. The Empire is busting through our front yard and the guard dogs are still at the vet," Hood said, using human metaphors.

The Arbiter nodded in understanding.

"Our forces are doing the best that they can, but we can't launch a counter-attack on our own. We're still calling up our reserves and training new recruits. The UEG is about to institute a draft. The private sector is building as many ships, guns, rations, and uniforms as possible, but we're just not ready for a War time economy. At least not for a short while. Until then, I need your help to push out the Empire," The man of British nobility said.

The Arbiter mulled it over for a few moments.

"Lord Hood. I know that I still have a debt to humanity that I can never repay. But I have several issues to attend to. Atriox and the Jiralhanae are showing signs of aggression, and my occupation force on Hesduros (the planet where most of the Storm Covenant Sangheili originate) is facing many troubles right now," Thel explained.

Hood, nevertheless, remained firm.

"Arbiter. I understand that you have your own problems. But with all due respect, this isn't just a Human problem. It's a Sangheili problem, a Turian problem, an Asari problem, and it's everyone's problem. The Empire has the support of the Batarians, the Krogan, the Vorcha, the Unggoy grunts, and Kig-Yar mercenaries. Soon, they might have the allegiance of Atriox's Banished and the yanme'e. If they gain this support and take over the galaxy, they could subjugate us, or worse, for centuries to come. And God forbid they gain access to Forerunner technology, such as the Halo Array. The Empire is led by a human government and has human soldiers. They most likely could activate it and control it. Can you imagine what kind of power they would possess? They would be unstoppable. No, they would be invincible. This goes far beyond anyone's interests. We cannot let the Empire conquer this galaxy at any cost whatsoever," Hood said.

Arbiter stared at Hood with his holographic eyes. He snapped his mandibles together in deep thought.

"You make a very compelling argument Lord Hood. Very well. I will spare as many ships as possible. Where are they needed?" Thel asked.

"Where the Empire's presence is most heavily concentrated. At New Seoul," Hood said.

The Arbiter bowed his head in respect to Hood.

"Very well Admiral. I will send Fleetmaster Vadum of the Shadow of Intent. We will drive the Empire into the depths of hell and bring their foolish puppets to heel. What about your reinforcements?" Arbiter asked.

"I'll be accompanying the UNSC Infinity, along with Battlegroup Dakota," Hood said. I'll also be bringing someone that you are quite familiar with to lead the counter attack on the ground," Hood explained.

Thel knew exactly who he was referring to.

"I see. Now I must go to make preprations for the assault. Victory to clan and kin Shipmaster of shipmasters," Arbiter said to Hood.

They both nodded in respect before Arbiter's hologram disappeared.

Hood then looked out the viewport. He watched as a UNSC flotilla exited slipspace. These ships must've been out on patrol along the frontier when the Empire attacked. The ships were covered in hull breaches and had scorch marks all over their hulls. They've clearly seen some action.

 _Don't worry boys. When we're done, it'll be the Empire that limps home after a serious beating. But instead of doing so with their tails between their legs, they'll retreat with their tails ripped off and shoved down their throats_.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _UEG Inner colony world, New Seoul, day two of the invasion_.

It was nighttime over the city of New Seoul, the capital city of the colony for which it was named after.

On any normal night, the bugs would be buzzing and the city would be very lively.

But of coarse, this was anything but a normal night.

Tonight, the city was indeed lively. But it was also very deadly.

The Empire was pushing into the city. However, that didn't mean that the UNSC was going to let them do so without a serious fight on their hands.

High above the city, Imperial and UNSC fighters swarmed over the city like two hives of insects. All across the city, UNSC AA guns fired up at the sky, their glowing tracers rounds flying up into the night sky a anything that wasn't friendly.

4 Imperial frigates and 2 light cruisers hovered in the city's airspace. They provided fire support to the troops on the ground. They fired on the UNSC armored forces that were dug in on the edge of the city.

They hit their targets, but they also incinerated several Imperial units that were in the mix. dozens of stormtroopers, along with several armored units, were incinerated by their own naval support. Whether it was carelessness or incompetence is up to interpretation **(Wink Wink)**.

But the UNSC wasn't just going to sit their and take it from the Imperial Navy. They had set up Anti-Ship missile batteries in several locations across the city.

When one of the Imperial corvettes got to close, the UNSC missile batteries unleashed a powerful volley of missiles up at the small corvette that was overplaying its hand.

The missiles flew up at the corvette and hit its underside. The damage was severe to the point where the ship's engines shut down and it started to lose altitude.

It crashed off in the distance, the fiery wreckage making the darkened horizon glow orange.

Back at the edge of the city, Joker squad of the Stormtrooper Corps were trying to move up with the rest of their comrades.

The area was littered the burning husks of viechles from both sides.

Imperial forces eventually made it to a river that divided the residential part of the city, which the Empire controlled, from the financial district. The bridge was blown out, so crossing the river would have to wait.

UNSC forces on the other side were dug in deep. They fired at anyone that poked their white helmet over cover.

"Come on, push up with the rest of the armor and keep up the pressure," SGT Harkas shouted out as he urged the rest of the Jokers forward with the 9th Battalions hover tanks.

Imperial hover tanks, which were based on old designs from Separatist AAT tanks that were painted gray, fired at the UNSC forces on the other side.

This gave Joker Squad a fighting chance. They moved behind the barrier with their remaining comrades.

On the other side of the river, UNSC AT (anti tank) teams were firing their M41 SPNKr rocket launchers, AKA the jackhammer, at the Imperial armor. A volley of 102 mm rockets were sent flying at the Imperial hover tanks. Some poorly aimed rockets deflected off of the tank's frontal armor and detonated in the air harmlessly. However, most rockets hit their mark. The Empire lost seven tanks to the skilled rocket jockies of the UNSC Marine Corps.

Karr, Potorr, and Gistang all fired their weapons across the river. Trask froze behind cover, afraid of having his rookie face blown off.

"We've gotta take out those AT teams. Gistang, get ready to use that grenade launcher. We'll cover you. And I better see some laser bolts coming from you Noob," Harkas shouted to the squad.

They all nodded at the veteran stormtrooper.

Harkas held up three fingers. Then two. Then one. And finally no fingers.

"Suppressing fire!" Harkas shouted as he stood over cover with the rest of the team, who all fired their E-11 blasters at the enemy.

Many other Imperial soldiers were doing the same thing. In a matter of seconds, many UNSC marines were forced to dig into cover.

The Marines were wearing urban digital camouflage BDUs. The digital camo was mostly colored gray with some white and black patterns.

When they were pinned down, many Imperial grenadiers stood up and fired their grenades over cover. Their grenades caused further casualties on the UNSC Infantry.

All remaining Imperial armored units fried across the river. This forced the UNSC to fall back deeper into the city.

Every remaining stormtroopers held their rifles up and cheered.

Darth Maleval was present with the troopers.

 _Where the hell was he? Hiding behind a tree or something_?

He ignited his red lightsaber and held it up in the air and shouted.

"Across the bridge. Kill every last one of them!" Maleval shouted as he charged across the river. Dozens of troopers and several viechles moved across the bridge.

They moved to pursue the retreating UNSC forces.

The advancing Imperials came upon a large plaza. This was where the Marines were going to make their stand.

It soon turned into a nightmare.

Imperial and UNSC forces clashed. Soldiers from both sides beat the crap out of each other at close range. It was bloody.

UNSC Marines got the upper hand at close range, but that's when Maleval came in. He slashed at every Marine in his range. Some Marines landed some shots on him, but the rounds deflected off of his thick armor.

He killed all of them. One remaining Marine charged at him but he drew a cable around the marine and sent a current of lightning through the cable, barbecuing the marine.

The stormtroopers advanced through the plaza. Joker squad advanced with them, securing the plaza.

At the moment, everything seemed all clear.

Suddenly, a remaining Marine was in a window above the plaza. He was aiming his weapon at Gistang.

"Heads up Gistang!" Trask shouted as he raised his rifle and squeezed off a few blasts. The bolts flew toward the Marine and hit him in the chest. He fell behind the window, dead.

"Nice job noob. We might make a trooper out of you yet," Gistang complimented.

"Yeah. If we survive this. But don't worry Gistang. I've got your back," Trask said.

The Empire secured the plaza and set up camp for the night.

However, the battle was far from over.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Early morning, New Seoul, financial district, Imperial controlled Plaza, early morning of day three of the invasion_.

Joker squad had just gotten up from getting about 4 hours of sleep. The troopers got up and opened up a few ration packs.

"Anyone got a heating unit," Gistang asked, wanting to have a warm meal.

"Yeah, I think I got one. How 'bout a kiss for it?" Potorr asked, trying to flirt with the red-headed female of the squad.

Karr burst out laughing, while Trask just chuckled. Gistang recoiled in disgust.

"I swear that one of these days I'm gonna push a pillow over your face in your sleep until you stop kicking," Gistang jokingly threatened.

Everyone laughed as Potorr set up the heating unit. Harkas joined his squad as they heating up their rations.

"Nice of you to join us sarge," Trask said.

"I always make time for my troopers," Harkas said.

Seconds later, Maleval and one of the political officers came out with an announcement.

"Soldiers of our glorious Empire. Today we shall destroy the Terran vermin for insulting our glorious Emperor and threatening the peace and security of our prosperous Empire," the officer preached.

"We will be moving out in five minutes. Pack up everything and be ready to move out," Maleval ordered.

Every trooper in the plaza moaned out loud.

"Is that a problem?" Maleval asked.

No one said anything for a few seconds until Lt. Gil Cassel of Joker squad's company, who was sitting with the other officers in the 9th battalion, sat up from his seat.

Maleval noticed and stared at Lt. Cassel.

"My Lord? With all due respect, the men've been fighting non-stop for two days and-," the Lt began.

"Are you implying that your men have outlived their usefulness or do they just refuse to fight?" Maleval accused.

"No my Lord. It's just that the troopers deserve a small rest and a warm meal before-," the Lt continued.

"The needs of these troopers doesn't matter to me. What matter's is that these filthy primitives are punished and this battalion will be the spearhead of our assault into the city center. Unless of coarse you wish to be branded as a traitor," Maleval threatened.

The troopers were shocked.

Cassel lowered his head in defeat. "No sir".

"Good. Now I suggest that you and your men prepare for battle, because your company is in the lead," Maleval ordered. He walked back into the nice comfortable building that he had spent the night in, leaving the rest of the company to gear up.

Harkas came up and disconnected the heating unit.

"Sorry troopers, but you're gonna have to eat 'em cold. We're moving out in five it looks like".

"Sarge this is ridiculous. How can he treat us like this?" Trask asked.

"I don't know noob. But that doesn't matter. Good soldiers follow orders".

"But sarge, are we soldiers or pawns?" Gistang asked.

Karr, Potorr, and Trask, looked between Gisting and Harkas.

Harkas didn't say a word and just picked up his gear. "Eat your rations and gear up. We're moving out".

The squad looked on in silence before doing as they were told.

A mind full of negative thoughts was never a good way to enter a battle.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _City Hall. UNSC Forward Command Post. The center of New Seoul_.

The fighting was brutal beyond belief.

UNSC forces fought for every last inch of ground. The Empire had to fight block by block, room by room, until they pushed the UNSC back towards city hall.

The Marines had 50 cal. turrets set up in the courtyard, as well as 75 mm field guns and AT teams in the courtyard. The political officer from earlier, who was a captain, gave the signal for the Empire to charge the courtyard.

Every Stormtrooper charged across open ground in order to get at the Marines, but the firepower was to heavy. The Machine gun emplacements were gunning down the troopers that were charging. Many of them fell before they could get up close to the barriers that the UNSC were using for their forward emplacements. Dozens of Stormtroopers were gunned down and their bodies littered the open ground in front of the courtyard of City Hall.

Joker squad made it to cover without a scratch, but they were dozens of feet from the UNSC's forward positions.

"Where the hell is our air support?" Potorr shouted.

"Occupied, elsewhere. Focus on what's in front of you".

"There's our armor," Trask exclaimed while pointing at a company of Imperial hover tanks and AT-ST walkers. As the armor advanced, the AT-STs fired their heavy chin gun and their rapid fire weaponry. They kept the UNSC gunners pinned down as the hover tanks moved up. They fired their heavy cannons at the UNSC machine-gunners.

When the Imperial ordnance hit their mark, the gunners disappeared in a rainstorm of body parts and concrete.

That's when the troopers finally moved up with the armor.

"Come on Jokers, we've got a building to take," Harkas shouted, urging his troopers onward.

The armor seemed unstoppable, but that when two tanks that had advanced to far were hit by UNSC field guns. One shell punctured the armor of each tank and they burst into flames. Fire shot out of the every hatch. No one got out.

A rocket was shot out of no where and hit an AT-ST in the head, which disappeared in a ball of fire that spit debris everywhere.

"Take out those cannons," Harkas ordered.

The Jokers ran up with the rest of the battalion.

Gistang used her grenade launcher to destroy the cannon on the far side from where the jokers were. It exploded. The ammo ignited and sent burning pieces of shrapnel into the UNSC gunnery crew. They walked like zombies and hollered in pain.

Gistang watched in horror as she watched her handy work scream in pain before it was put down by passing Imperial troopers.

Those same troopers suddenly went up in an explosion as the UNSC Marines started lobbing grenades over cover at the advancing Imperials.

Trask and Karr cleared out the crew of the other gun in front of them. Potorr ran up to it and placed a thermal detonator on the unmanned gun. The three troopers ran for cover just in time for the gun to go up in an explosion.

The 9th battalion advanced further into the courtyard when they saw several UNSC Scorpion tanks and field guns waiting for them on the other side of the barriers.

They fired their powerful cannons at the Imperial forces that dare to tread to far. Imperial viechles didn't even stand a chance. The leg of on walked was shot out, forcing it to tip over. It's head exploded when it hit the ground.

A platoon of Marine Flamethrowers, AKA Hellbringers, fired jets of flame at several Imperial units that strayed to far forward from the main group.

"This is a nightmare, and they won't give up!" Trask exclaimed

"Where the hell is Lord Maleval?" Karr shouted.

"Maybe watching from far away while we get slaughtered out here," Potorr said, throwing in his two credits.

"This isn't the time troopers. Just keep your heads down," Harkas shouted.

Suddenly, several Imperial tie bombers flew in a wedge formation towards the UNSC fortifications.

"About time we got some air support," Trask shouted.

The UNSC AA turrets in the area fired up at the approaching bombers.

One bomber was hit in the port side wing. It was soon ripped off and it was forced to the right by the wind. The bomber crashed in the bomber that flanked it to the right.

That bomber was taken out. It's main body crashed the ground and skipped across the surface, where it hit an AT-ST, which exploded and took out an entire platoon of Stormtroopers.

"Will this day ever end?" Gistang shouted. "If you do your job right?" Harks shouted back.

The remaining bombers dropped their ordnance. The bombs fell on their targets and caused several large secondary explosions, signaling the destruction of the UNSC positions.

"Advance," Lt Cassel ordered.

The 9th battalion moved up through the fire.

Several Hellbringers and the marines around them were scorched from when their fuel tanks exploded. And the tanks were reduced to burning steel coffins.

"Alright. Get ready to breach this building". Cassel ordered.

The political officer came up.

"No need Lt. Surely they must be on the verge of surrender now. I'll ask them to surrender," the officer arrogantly said, trying to be brave and make a name for himself.

As the officer was about to go forward with his plan, Lt Cassel held his arm out in front of him.

"Captain, I don't think that's a good idea. Respectfully, you underestimating both their resolve and professional skill in battle," Cassel said, trying to reason with the stubborn officer, who clearly hasn't yet grasped the idea that the UNSC is willing to go out swinging.

The officer scoffed in disgust and waved his hand over his shoulder in a dismissive manner.

"Nonsense Lieutenant. Watch and learn".

The political officer walked up to a point about 60 feet in front of the large double doorway to City Hall to give a sermon and appeal to the UNSC Marines to surrender.

"Soldiers of the UNSC. You fought valiantly, but you are surrounded, as well as hopelessly outnumbered and outmatched. The corrupt industrialists and war hawk politicians who sent you here to die to not care about you. To them, you are just toys. Slaves to the will. Are they really worth dying for? You have no hope of winning. Lay down your arms and we'll-," the officer said.

But suddenly, dozens on tracers flew out of the building's window sills. They were all trained on the officer. They all hit their mark. The political officer was torn into bloody ribbons. His arms were blown off, his face was caved in with bloody bullet holes, his eye balls were about ten feet away in both directions, his spine was blown out of his back, his torso fell backward as it was ripped from his waist, and his legs fell forward.

His shredded remains lay scattered in a pool of blood that Dracula would probably try to swim in.

They then ceased fire.

Everyone in the courtyard stared in dumbstruck horror at what they just witnessed.

Lt. Cassel shook his head back and forth to get what he saw out of his head.

He cleared his throat.

"All armored units, fire on that building".

The remaining tanks fired on the building. The face of City hall was soon turned in swiss cheese.

"Everyone advance. For the Empire!" Cassel shouted.

The stormtroopers sounded a battle cry in unison and charged at the building.

As they charged, tracers flew into the horde of white armored figure that charged city hall.

Mortars that were obviously on the roof tops rained down on the horde of troopers.

Entire clusters were taken out.

Rockets sailed into the air and hit several Imperial tanks.

This was it. The fight was now an all out brawl.

As the Stormtroopers stormed into the building and flooded the main lobby, they were met with fire from the balconies on the floor above them. The Marines had a superior position as they gunned down everyone inside.

The stormtroopers still continued to flood the building.

A grenade was thrown to the ground floor. It landed right next to Potorr's feet.

"Oh stang!" He exclaimed just before it went off.

The explosion sent chunks of him in every direction. The shrapnel from the grenade bounced off of PVT. Trask's armor as he stepped in front of Cassel to shield him. One piece of shrapnel hit his eye. The glass part over his eye took the entirety of the blow and shattered.

Several feet away, Karr was dueling with a UNSC Marine. They clashed at each other, using their empty rifles as clubs. The UNSC marine lost his rifle, but he wasn't done yet. He tackled Karr, forcing him to lose his rifle as well. They tussled on the ground for a few minutes. The UNSC Marine produced a knife from its shoulder holster. The knife's guards looked like a pair of brass knuckles. He tried to use it, but the mandalorian veteran found his rifle and used it on the Marine. While on the ground, he fired his weapon point blank into the jarhead's face. He dropped to the ground dead.

Karr jumped back up and got back into the fight and moved upstairs with the rest of the company.

Gistang was using her powerful grenade launcher to fire on the UNSC forces above her. She vaporized several Marines that were along the balconies of the top floor.

But there were still plenty of UNSC Marines that could do damage.

One Marine used his BR-55 rifle to excellent use. Three of his rounds burst out of his rifle and flew toward Gistang. Two of the bullets went wide, but the third one struck her utility belt in one of the compartments that she used to load her weapon's power packs.

The pack on her belt ignited. The burst of energy vaporized the squad's red-headed female and scorched the armor of SGT Harkas, who was standing nearby.

Despite losing two of its members, the Jokers continued to spearhead the attack into the building's second floor.

The defenders, knowing that this was their final stand, fought like wild animals.

Stormtroopers and Marines charged at each other. They got up close and personnel in the melee.

Fists were swung, faces were caved in with rifle stocks, and warm flesh was pierced by cold steel or hot plasma.

At the end of the melee, the remaining stormtroopers of the 9th battalion stood breathlessly over the bloody remains of comrades and enemies alike.

There were only 40 men left out of about 600 men and women. Of which, over a dozen were wounded, with one critical.

One of the troopers went to the roof to raise a tattered Imperial banner above city hall upon tearing down the UNSC flag and the colony's flag beneath it **(for this fanfic, in times of war, the UNSC raises their flag above colonial flags)**.

But most of these troopers were fine with finally getting a break.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Mortar fire was still booming and the staccato rip of UNSC automatic firearms was still heard across the city.

The remnants of Joker squad sat near what remained of their teammates. It was going to be closed casket for both of them.

Darth Maleval came by and looked around the courtyard.

He watched as the remaining troopers lounged around and heated their rations.

"I suppose congratulations are in order Lt. Cassel. You and your subordinates have shown their loyalty to the Emperor. Perhaps you were not the useless traitor that I perceived you and your men to be after all," Maleval said arrogantly.

Karr balled his hands into fists, one of them holding his knife.

"Did you plan this?" Cassel asked.

"Oh yes. I needed to see how far you were willing to go to prove yourselves. It also gave me a chance to remove the wheat from the chaff. The disloyal weak, from the strong followers of the Emperor," Maleval said.

"We've lost 560 men and women since we've landed," Cassel objected.

"A necessary loss, but we can have them replaced very quickly," Maleval said.

Cassel stood up in anger and pointed a finger at the sith lord.

"Maleval. These were good people. They had families back home. I have a brother in the navy. Trask has a fiancee in the tie fighter corps and his parents are in the Imperial's ruling elite. Gistang's brothers fought in the 2nd Sith War," Cassel said pointing at Gistang's covered remains.

"What is your point?" Maleval asked.

"These troopers and their families have given their lives over to the Empire. Some of us quite literally. We are all willing to die for the Empire. And that is more than I can say for you".

Maleval levitated Cassel into the air and proceeded to choke him.

"You will die for saying that you fool".

Suddenly, Karr ran up to the sith lord and stabbed him with his knife.

He shouted in pain, dropped Cassel, and turned to Karr.

"And you shall join him". Maleval raised his saber about to kill Karr.

Suddenly, laser bolts from Trask's rifle pierced into Maleval's back. He shouted in pain before slumping to the ground dead.

"Nice job noob," Karr said, pounding Trask's shoulder pads.

Later, after Harkas was shipped off to a field hospital, Maleval's remains were shipped out, and after Cassel was promoted to major in order to reorganize the 9th Battalion, Karr was transferred to a different squad, and the newly promoted Corporal Trask was sent to meet up with the new recruits.

He watched as the three of them stepped off of the transport.

The new recruits, Orland, Armang, and Kniffler, walked off the platform.

They flagged him down. He walked over. They saluted to him.

"Excuse me sir. Do you know where Joker squad is?" One of the noobs asked.

"You're looking at it. Corporal Trask," he said.

"Wait. You're it?"

"Until Harkas comes back from the hospital? Yes. Now come on. We've got a battalion to reorganize," Trask said as he led the three noobs to the barracks.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Imperial flagship, Relentless_.

"What is the status of the invasion?" Konstantine asked.

"Ma'am, our forces control most of the capital city, but the UNSC is in control of 10 percent of the city. They don't appear to be letting go anytime soon. But we've Identified the source of their supplies. A cliffside fortress up in the mountains. Fort MacArthur they call it," Agent Kallus explained.

"Then it's settled. Send a message to our ground forces. Our next target is Fort MacArthur," Konstantine ordered.

"But what about the remains of the UNSC battlegroup?"

"They are of no concern to me. They are a non-factor".

Konstantine will soon learn that those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **Chapter 6 everyone. Next two chapters will be the UNSC perspective.**

 **Also, 5000 VIEWS!**

 **That's awesome. Thanks people.**

 **This is Grubkiller, over and out.**


	6. Chapter 6-Resist and Bite

_**Character 1: "Grubkiller's story. It's finished".**_

 _ **Character 2: "No. I think we're just getting started".**_

 **Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.**

 **Hey folks, here's part 7 of 'TSNP'. I'm gonna be returning to the Marines from chapter 4, and Admiral Marcus's remaining ships from chapter 5, in this new chapter. Enjoy.**

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Fort MacArthur, UNSC military installation, 7 miles outside of Imperial occupied New Seoul, day 6 of the invasion_.

Things were looking grim for the UNSC forces across the planet, not to mention people in general across the rest of UEG space.

The proud feats of human culture, society, and achievement were being pounded into slag by the benevolent Imperial Invaders.

Rural colony worlds along the frontier had been conquered by the Empire, their vast farmlands being plundered by Imperial authorities and turned into collective farms, while their previous owners were sent to labor camps.

Armed citizens that stayed behind to protect their families and property were publicly executed if they were caught.

Men were sent to labor camps if they spoke out against the Empire, women were being forced to do odd jobs for Local Imperial forces, and children were being indoctrinated by Propaganda officers.

Anything that was considered subversive to Imperial authority, including places of worship, bookstores that were full of everything that contradicted the Empire's beliefs, public/private schools, and businesses of all kinds were taken over by the Empire, if not destroyed.

On planets that fell under Batarian rule however, things were much worse. People were being evicted from their homes and property. People who came to the Frontier to build a prosperous life for themselves and their families, found themselves being oppressed by the Empire, and sold into slavery by the Batarians.

This was the price of opposing the Empire's will.

But that didn't, nay wouldn't, stop Humanity from fighting to the bitter end for its freedom and survival.

Despite the subjugation of the majority of New Seoul and the bombardment of the other cities across the planet, the UNSC military still had a presence that got the attention of the Empire.

PFC. Jack Mitchell and his squad mates from Sentinel Platoon, SSGT. Knox, Lcpl. Daniels, PFC. Irons, PVT. Jackson, and 'Doc' Holiday, along with what remained of the 11th Marine Regiment, hunkered downin their foxholes along the forested slopes at the base of the cliffs just beneath the Fort.

Fort MacArthur was situated into the mountain cliffside that overlooked a massive valley. At the end of that valley was New Seoul. The Empire controlled 90% of the city. But they didn't have total control over it, so the UNSC was supplying and reinforcing the city's garrison.

Mitchell and his fellow Marines had one job: Defend Fort MacArthur at all costs! If they didn't, then New Seoul would fall, along with the rest of the planet.

That Job was becoming more and more difficult as the Empire continued to pound the mountain range from afar.

Imperial Artillery and Tie Bombers continued plastering anything that didn't have a crater already.

As the Explosions continued, Mitchell kissed the silver cross around his neck and uttered a quick prayer as he kneeled down in his foxhole, which he shared with Irons.

Jackson raised his voice over the non-stop bombardment.

"When I joined the corps, I did so under the assumption that I wouldn't be pissing in my own unmarked grave," he shouted out.

"Boy you better stow that bitchy attitude 'fore I break your jaw and shove my size 16 hoof up your whiny ass," SSGT Knox yelled back. Holiday, who was in a third foxhole with Daniels, chimed in.

"He's got a point Staff Sergeant. Where the hell is our support?" The Navy corpsman shouted to Knox.

"Didn't you hear the Colonel? 'We are the support' **(Name that game)**. So quit your belly aching you damn Swabbie," Daniels said, taking a quick jab at Holiday's position as a Navy corpsman (the Marines and Navy make fun of each other).

"Will all of you insubordinate bitches shut the fuck up and look alive? It sounds like the bombardment is thinning out," Knox said.

After a few minutes, the bombardment had indeed halted.

Moments later, White shapes started to slowly move through the foliage.

"Alright ladies. We're about to get busy. Close those face plates and don't detonate those charges until you're in strangling range," Knox ordered, referring to a line of Lotus mines that the Marines had set up for the Empire as a parting gift, that sends parts of the Imperials in every direction.

The Marines all pressed a button on their helmets. Dark gray plates closed over their helmets. They also made sure that their digital camoflaugue fatigues matched the environment behind them. If they were in the city, their armor would turn gray, tan in the desert, white in a tundra, and green in the jungles. No matter where they were, the Marines were one with their surroundings. They were the predators. And the Empire, their prey.

Their faceplates usually had little orange lights (Just like the US Marines from COD: advanced warfare).

Imperial troopers continued their slow advance through the jungles.

AT-ST's were behind the Stormtroopers. They stomped their way though the foliage. No bush was safe from the Empire, much less the people that they were trying to subjugate.

In a few minutes, one stormtrooper was looking closely at something a few feet in front of him. The spot that he was looking at started to blink with small orange lights. It was a faceplate.

"Hey Mitchell. Where do Imperials go when they die?" Irons whispered to his religious friend, who was holding the detonator for the Lotus mines.

"Everywhere," Mitchell said as he hit the detonator.

Explosions blossomed across the ridge-line where the mines were planted.

Tree splinters were sent in every direction and AT-ST's toppled over.

"Let those bucket headed bastards have it," Knox yelled out.

Suddenly, every spot on the ridge-line overlooking the Imperial forces exploded with grenade and rifle fire.

Imperial stormtroopers fell in droves as they were pierced by brass bullets from the UNSC Marines. Their camoflaugue was good that the stormmies had trouble finding targets.

"Hell ya. That's what you plastic wearing mothafucka's get for taking on my beloved Corps!" Knox shouted tauntingly at the Imperials.

Stormtroopers made a desperate charge up the hill. The Marines, with fixed bayonets, charged down the hill to meet them in kind.

"URRAH!" shouted the Marines in one terrifying battle cry as they charged into the waves of terrified stormtroopers. Some troopers were repeatedly jabbed by the UNSC bayonets. Others broke ranks and fell back down the hill. Some were shot when they returned to their starting point at the bottom of the hills. The rest reformed the charge and joined their reinforcements back up the hill.

Suddenly, Imperial Artillery started falling on the UNSC positions. It took out some of their own men as well, but it also started landing on UNSC foxholes as yell.

"Rounds incoming. Fall back to the next faze-line!" Knox ordered his men as they withdrew further up the hill.

"Pussies! They can't shoot worth a shit, so they just keep dropping mortars on us," Jackson yelled out.

"Yeah, and their hitting their own guys in the process. Man, serving the Empire must suck ass," Irons called out over the radio, joining the conversation.

"Just keep moving up the hill," Lcpl. Daniels ordered.

The Marines were using a strategy that has been used throughout history. It was called Defense in depth.

It was basically when the defender falls back and leads the attacker into a stronger defense line.

The Marines continued holding off the Empire at several different positions. The Empire would suffer casualties, drop ordnance on the UNSC positions and be drawn into a strong defense line.

Eventually, the Marines fell back up the cliffs to fort MacArthur. The cliffs had command over the entire valley, which was controlled by the Empire.

With this new position atop the cliffs, the UNSC started firing artillery, from howitzers, kodiak platforms, and rhino tanks, down on the exposed Imperial positions down in the valley below.

Imperial forces in the valley below were now fish in a barrel for UNSC artillery.

Moments later, the Empire started sending drop-ships up to the cliffside fortress in order to deploy their troops directly.

This endeavor failed as the enemy gunships ran into a thick wall of AA.

The Fortress had CIWS (close-in weapon system) that sprayed hundreds of bullets at the advancing gunships. The ships and their escorts were turned into swiss cheese.

Their were also wolverines that fired rockets at anything that got past the turrets.

The Marines cheered as their adversary failed to take the fort.

A dark skinned colonel walked up to his men. It was Colonel Hardaway.

"Marines. I wanted to congradulate you men personally. The name 'devil dogs' is very apparent in the way you're fighting the Empire. And General Capone also sends his regards. Every minute that we hold this fort, is another minute that he and his men in the city get resupplied, and another minute for our boys back home can get us some assistance. But be advised. The Empire will not give up without a fight, and we don't have an unlimited surplus in ammunition. But don't let that stop you from kicking Imperial ass. Urrah?" Hardaway asked.

"URRAH!" Every Marine shouted at Hardaway, who had a huge grin spread across his face.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _UNSC Dawn under Heaven._

Admiral Marcus stood on the bridge of his flagship, the Dawn under Heaven, as his battlegroup waited in the nebula on the edge of the system.

Captain Edwards walked up to him.

"Sir, our slip-space probes have eyes on the Imperial forces. It looks like the Imperial fleet is scattered across the system on patrol. The largest concentration appears to be above one of the moons, the one facing the general direction of UNSC space. And an Imperial battle group appears to be heading for Fort MacArthur".

"Then that's their target. According to the transmissions we've intercepted, Fort MacArthur is the key to our hold on the planet below. We lose that, then our supply lines are shredded, and New Seoul falls to the Empire," Marcus reasoned.

"That seems to be the case sir," Edwards agreed.

"It's settled then. Send a message to the rest of the Battle group. We're gonna take out that battle group and give the Marines a fighting chance," Marcus ordered.

"Yes Sir," Edwards saluted before he turned around. The call to general quarters was sounded.

Moments later, portals began to rip into the fabric of time and space. Every UNSC warships passed through a portal.

They were performing a in-system jump. It took them right above the planet.

Their trip jump also took them right behind the Imperial fleet.

Usually it would've been so much easier to just use a HAVOK grade tactical nuke to wipe out the fleet. But that was usually ill-advised. The EMP would travel for hundreds of miles if detonated in orbit. It might fry the electric grid down below and short circuit the UNSC's ground forces equipment. It would also cost time and money to fix the power grid.

But a nuke wasn't necessary, for the UNSC battle group jumped behind the Imperial task force. They also didn't have their shields up. No one considered Marcus' battle group to be a potent threat. It was their funeral of coarse.

The bows of every UNSC warship glowed yellow before their MAC barrels exploded, sending a high explosive shell at a fraction of the speed of light.

With the Imperial warships facing the other way, they never knew what hit them until several medium sized shells passed right through each of them. They were all small ships, the largest being a frigate. The ships were doomed the minute they were spotted.

The crew on the _Dawn under Heaven_ cheered at their small victory.

"Good work everyone. We've bought those leathernecks some valuable time. Now get us the hell out of here," Marcus ordered.

The ships turned around and headed for the nebula that they were hiding in for the past few days. They jumped into slipspace to get there quickly, but something was wrong.

The slipspace portals opened up and they passed through, but they weren't at their destination. Instead, they were near the moon. The one the was completely controlled by the Empire.

"What the hell was that Lieutenant?" Captain Edwards asked.

The scanning technician started scanning the ship's surroundings. It revealed the answer.

"Sir. It's those Star-Destroyers with the large domes. They're generating a magnetic field that's interfering with our FTL capabilities," the technician said.

"Sir. We're being hailed," the comm officer shouted out.

The screen was activated to show the pale faces of Governor Pryce and Adm. Konstantine.

"Well look at who came out of hiding," Pryce gloated.

"Huh, If it isn't Jack and Jill. I should worn you that there's a scary witch nearby," Marcus said as the two imperial officers looked at each other confused, not understanding the reference. "Now If you'll 'cuse us, we must be going now".

"I'm afraid that's not an option. You have been a thorn in our side for far too long and now you can no longer escape our wrath. It's time that you face your fate," Konstantine said.

"It could be a tolerable fate if you just surrender. We will then show you mercy," Pryce said.

Marcus just stared at her for a few seconds.

"Well Admiral. I'm waiting," Pryce taunted.

Marcus looked around the bridge and saw the faces of his crew. They looked at him like he was their father. After all, they'd follow him to the deepest pit of hell if it meant strangling the souls of their eternally damned enemies.

He looked back at the arrogant faces of his two adversaries.

"Sweat-heart!? You can kiss my wrinkly old ass," Marcus said in one final defiant breath.

The entire crew cheered at their defiant Admiral.

"So be it, Terran Scum," Pryce said, having had enough.

The screen went black.

Marcus watched as more than 20 Imperial warships gathered in front of the 9 UNSC warships.

Dozens of Imperial fighters swarmed out of the Enemy warships to attack the UNSC forces.

Marcus turned back to his crew.

"Well everyone. It looks like this is it. Let's make the end memorable".

The _Dawn under Heaven_ and its battle group stood their ground as they were surrounded by the larger and numerous Imperial warships.

Dozens of Tie fighters and hundreds of green lasers poured out of the triangular warships as moved to decimate what remained of the UNSC defense forces in the system.

Ships on both sides pounded away at each other. The bows of every UNSC warship glowed yellow before exploding.

Yellow streaks of lightning pierced into the empty void of space towards the Imperial warships.

The powerful, magnetically propelled, projectiles slammed into the Imperial warships. The smaller ships were gutted from stem to stern before bursting int flames.

The larger Imperial battlewagons shook off the MAC rounds and continued their onslaught. They destroyed 5 small imperial warships and damaged two star-destroyers.

Imperial turbo lasers didn't quite do critical damage against the Titanium-A armor at this range, but the Ties did.

Swarms of Imperial Tie bombers fired their ordnance at their targets. They flew straight into the wall of AA fire from their Terran opponents.

Having fought off waves of Imperial fighters at the beginning of the siege, there wasn't enough ammo left in the UNSC's AA arsenal. Soon, they ran out of ammo.

That left the Imperial Bombers with no obstacles to overcome.

The UNSC warships were eventually overwhelmed.

The reactor cores on two UNSC destroyers went critical, causing both of them to detonate and allow a mini-sun to form in the spots that they once occupied.

Every UNSC ship, despite the fact that they were now burning, kept firing.

Their MAC rounds all hammered into the hull of an Imperial Star-Destroyer. It exploded, not being able to handle the strain of being hit by several raglans at once.

But eventually, the seven remaining UNSC ships, the _Heaven_ , three destroyers, and 3 Paris Class Heavy frigates, were disabled.

Fire poured out of the exposed areas on their damaged hulls. They no longer fired, and their engines were down.

So now, they couldn't escape or even fight back. They were dead in space, staring down dozens of warships belonging to the invaders.

Back on the bridge of the Dawn under Heaven, the bridge crew frantically worked in the red emergency lights that flooded the ship's CIC.

They were initiating the Cole Protocol, a directive put in place back in 2535 by the Office of Naval Intelligence, named after Covenant War hero Admiral Cole.

It called for the destruction of all sensitive data that could be used against the UEG, such as the location of Earth.

The comm officer ran up to Admiral Marcus and saluted.

"Sir, the Empire is hailing us again," he said.

"Bawh, put it through," Marcus scoffed.

The monitor showed the pale faces of Konstantine and Pryce.

"Oh this is just wonderful, isn't it Admiral Marcus? We now have complete control over this sector now. With your pitiful ships out of the way, we can begin the destruction of your precious fort MacArthur and finalize our take over of the city. We must be thanking you Admiral. If it weren't for you over-playing your hand, then the fight for this system would've taken longer. Soon, this war will be over," Pryce mocked.

"Surely you don't expect the rest of our people to give up that easily?" Marcus asked his arrogant opponent.

"Yes, because for all of your pompous arrogance, I believe that your people cannot stomach a war of this scale. With this victory, they will be begging for us to set up the negotiating table. And they will be begging to accept the terms that we give them. No matter how harsh the terms are. Now as much as I love these conversations Admiral, I'm afraid that this is the last one. Say good night," Pryce said.

Marcus sat down on his knees and clasped his hands in front of his chin, as if he were about to beg. It made Pryce smile.

"Ma'am please. I am begging you, with tears in my eyes, 'Do not destroy our ships'. If you do, then the survivors will talk about what we did to you for centuries to come," Marcus said. This seemed to confuse Pryce, as her smile disappeared.

"And pray tell, what stories will the survivors tell of this day?" Pryce asked.

"How we killed every last Godforsaken one of you bastards without remorse," Marcus said with all of the venom that he could place in his voice.

Pryce recoiled in annoyance.

"I have had quite enough of you Admiral Marcus," she said as she turned to Konstantine. "I want you to destroy them. No survivors".

Konstantine saluted and turned towards the CIC at the back of the _Relentless_ 's bridge.

"Good bye my dear Admiral," Pryce said to Marcus.

Marcus stood up and crossed his arms over his chest and just stared at the screen before closing his eyes. He was ready to accept his fate.

Pryce smiled as she saw Marcus remain speechless for once.

The Imperial cannons glowed green as they prepared to deliver the final blow.

But then when the UNSC's fate seemed sealed, a couple dozen blue portals were ripped into the fabric of space and time.

For a few seconds, nothing happened. That's when multiple objects torpedoed out of each portal at full speed.

Those objects were warships. Blocky UNSC warships, and the elegantly smooth fish-like Sangheili warships.

Leading the small fleet of Sangheili warships was the flagship of the Arbiter's fleet, the _Shadow of Intent_.

The UNSC fleet, Battlegroup Dakota (8 Autumn class cruisers), was led by the flagship of humanity's fleet, the _Infinity_. The Infinity was created towards the end of the Covenant war. It didn't see action in the war, but it would take its place as flagship of the Navy.

The Infinity was already accelerating through the portal when it opened. It didn't stop. Instead it charged into the Imperial forces above the moon.

All 3.5 miles of Titanium barreled into the closest Imperial Star Destroyer. The smaller ship never stood a chance as it was completely demolished.

Many of the slip-space portal didn't even close yet before some of the Allied ships started firing.

As the Infinity charged forward, nearly a dozen UNSC Paris class heavy frigates were launched out of the Ships's lower compartments. They formed a tight defense around Humanity's flagship.

The 8 Autumn class heavy cruisers, which were upgraded versions of the halcyon class cruisers from the war, that were escorting the _Infinity,_ fired on the Imperial Naval forces.

The _Shadow of Intent_ and its escorts used their plasma weaponry to overload the Imperial shields. The shields weren't even down when the hulls began to boil and melt from the extreme heat. When the shields were down, their plasma lances cleaved through their targets.

Back on the Relentless, Pryce and Konstantine still watched in horror at the behemoths that had just entered the system.

Marcus noticed their reaction back on the _Dawn under Heaven_ through the view screen.

He smiled.

"Good bye Pryce. Have fun in Hell," Marcus watched as the shocked governor looked back at him. "Cut the feed Lieutenant. I've seen enough".

As the screen went black, the entire bridge crew stood up and cheered at the reinforcements who arrived just in the nick of time, and who were now dishing out punishment to the Imperial invaders.

The wrath of Mankind has just been unleashed upon the Empire.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Transmission from the Fleetmaster of the 1st fleet of Retribution, R'tas Vadum, to the UNSC Infinity. 5 minutes after exiting slip-space._

" _Hail humans and take heed. This is the Carrier Shadow of Intent. Reclaim your world, while we deal with the Imperial Nishum_ **(I think its Sangheili for maggots)** _on the moon_ ".

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Fort MacArthur, surface of New Seoul, 7 miles away from the capital city. Day 7 of the Imperial invasion_.

On a scale of 1-10, the UNSC Marines stationed at Fort MacArthur were pretty fucked.

For hours, the Marines had the advantage. They engaged the Empire in the valley below and baited them towards the center of that same valley, which was directly in the sight of several Kodiak artillery pieces.

The valley was a shooting range and the Imperial forces and encampments were target practice for the Marines on the high ground. The UNSC even sent in Shortsword fighter-bombers to carpet bomb the area with napalm, destroying enough trees to make a hippie collapse into a seizure.

It had been one of the most devastating, not to mention embarrassing, moment in the history of the Imperial army.

But that was when the Empire wised up and started sending more warships to the fort.

An Imperial Star-Destroyer and its escorts hovered over the valley. They pounded the base and the cliffs that it rested on.

UNSC weapons emplacements were destroyed, and many of the buildings, warehouses, and watch towers were reduced to rubble as powerful green lasers continued the onslaught.

 **(A/N: FYI, Fort MacArthur looks just like the cliffside base from mission 6 of Halo Wars for this fanfic).**

The base in the center of the fort had been demolished moments earlier.

As Imperial stormtroopers were dropped off on the cliffside from gunships, UNSC Marines met them in force.

The Marines fought desperately to keep the Empire away from the fort. They fixed Bayonets and tried to drive them off of the cliffs, with some initial success.

But unfortunately, the Marines were met with a second wave of Stormtroopers.

Col. Hardaway was in one of the remaining watch towers watching over the battle. He watched through his binoculars as his men were pushed deeper into the mountainside fortress.

He picked up his comm device to speak directly to Marine officer on the ground, Captain Sullivan.

"Capt. Sullivan. What's the situation?"

"Sir, we're doing everything we can. But my boys are being pushed back," The Marine officer said.

"Captain, I understand that the situation is deteriorating quickly. But We Can Not allow the Empire to take this fort. We lose the fort, then we lose our supply lines, and that FUBAR (Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition) situation over in the city'll get worse in a hurry," Hardaway said, explaining the stakes.

"But sir, there's too many of them," Sullivan said over the radio.

"Son. You Are UNSC Marines. All The Alien Bastards in Hell Can't Overrun You! Now Throw those plastic wearing motherfuckers off of my mountain range!" Hardaway shouted before slamming the phone down onto the desk.

He continued to look out over the fort's grounds at the ensuing battle. A battle for the survival and continued existence of Mankind. Bodies littered the concrete ground.

That's when AT-PTs started to be dropped off by more Imperial gunships. They landed on the cliffs and advanced towards the smoking ruins of the Fort.

"May God Help Us".

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

PFC Mitchell and his squad-mates were pushed back further and further until they were forced to take cover behind a warthog.

Irons jumped behind the LAAG in the back of the hog and he fired at anything that was wearing white armor.

Jackson, Knox, and Mitchell fired their rifles over cover, downing several Imperial troopers.

Doc Holiday stood back, firing his MA5C over cover, waiting to help any of his teammates should the need arise.

Daniels used a grenade launcher. He fired a projectile at a cluster of Imperial trooper, taking out most of them.

That's when several AT-PTs scurried over to a position nearby. They fired upon a watch tower that had several UNSC Marines firing from it's top floor.

The base of the tower was damaged by Imperial blaster fire. The tower eventually came crumbling to the ground below. When it hit the ground, so did the Marines that occupied it, with gory results.

One of the AT-PT's spotted Mitchell's squad and fired.

"Everyone fall back and pop smoke," Knox shouted out.

Mitchell and Jackson popped smoke and beat feet away from the warthog with Holiday and Knox. Irons and Daniels started to leave the Hog when the enemy rounds struck home.

The hog wreckage went up in flames and shrapnel. It took Daniels and Irons with it.

"Will, NNOOO!" Mitchell shouted, about to run for his friend's corpse.

"We can't get them now. We have to fall back with the rest of the Battalion," Knox ordered.

The remaining squad-mates retreated further into the fortress near where the main base was located.

Imperial forces now had control over most of the base. They continued to corner what remained of the garrison.

The Marines found cover and stood their ground. They fired back.

"Defend this position!" Captain Sullivan said as he emerged from his field tent, while firing his MA5C assault rifle in short controlled bursts.

Mitchell fired his Battle Rifle at anything that he could find that wasn't friendly. He squeezed the trigger until re ran out of ammo.

He fired and reloaded on repeat for two minutes. That's when he was hit in his left arm by an Imperial blaster bolt.

"Gah! Fuck, I'm hit. Corpsman!" Mitchell shouted. Holiday came over to assist.

"I'd better get a raise for baby sitting you leathernecks!" the disgruntled sailor said.

"Well we should get a raise for making sure there are Marines for you to patch up you swabby," Knox shouted at Holiday.

He applied morphine and bandages to Mitchell, just as Mitchell reached for his M6 Magnum and started sending 12.7 mm rounds down range from a sitting position.

That's when a grenade landed near Knox and Jackson.

"Oh shit," Knox said as he kicked it away. Just after he kicked the grenade, it exploded and sent burning shrapnel into his torso.

"Ah fuck, Corpsman!" Jackson said as he started to drag an injured Knox into cover.

As Holiday left Mitchell to work on Knox, Jackson went back to firing his rifle at the ever advancing enemy.

As Mitchell reloaded his last magazine into his empty sidearm, he could only think of one thing.

 _This is it_.

He then kissed the silver cross around his neck and uttered a prayer for his girlfriend in the airfare and for his family.

But just as he raised his magnum and fired the first shot, a strike of lightning struck down from the Heavens and split the clouds.

That lightning pierced through the Imperial Star Destroyer that was hovering over the valley beneath the mountain range.

It caused a massive explosion.

The gray dreadnought lost altitude and crashed into the burning valley beneath it.

It caused everyone, both Marine and stormtrooper, to stop what they were doing to stare up at the sky.

"Holy Shit!" Jackson exclaimed.

That's dozens of archer missiles were dropped on the cliffside, destroying most of the AT-PTs.

Then several more MAC rounds slammed into the valley floor.

And finally, there came the drop pods. Dozens of ODST pods pounded into the concrete pavement.

The hatches popped open to reveal many Hell-jumper shock troopers charge at the Imperial forces that remained on the cliffside.

Many Stormtroopers were forced to do two things. Surrender to the fearsome shock troopers, or be violently driven off of the cliffside.

Most of them chose the former, but others didn't.

One thing was for sure: the cavalry had arrived.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _In the air above New Seoul. Approaching the Capital_.

High above New Seoul, Dozens of pelicans from the UNSC invasion fleet soared through the air.

Many of them were carrying Scorpion tanks, warthogs, supplies, and UNSC marines.

Their mission: relieve the remnants of the UNSC garrison, re-take the city, and drive the invaders from the planet.

On one of the dropships, a figure with olive colored body armor and a gold visor stood near the open ramp, with one of his arms holding onto a hand rail.

He had a deep gash across the right chest-plate for his Mark VI power armor. Underneath that armor was a man that has plenty of experience fighting for Mankind's continued existence. He had a BR-55 over his back, as well as dual M7 SMG's on his hips.

Behind him was a squad of jump pack wielding ODSTs.

They were ready and raring for action.

It was time to unleash Mankind's power and wrath onto the outsiders that dare to tread where they are least welcome.

"So, do you have a plan Chief?" said a female voice that occupied his helmet (and mind).

"Thought I'd try shooting my way through the city. Keep it simple," the armored figure said.

"Just remember to keep your head down. There's two of us in here," His AI companion said.

"And you just remember to keep up," the armored figure countered.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **that's it folks. Chapter 7. Chapter 8: Finishing The Fight (for now).**

 **And I'm sure that most of you know who those two at the end were. If you don't, well then, Why are you here?"**


	7. Chapter 7-fight or flight

**Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.**

 **Here's the end of Act 1. A couple of old friends will be ruining a few (thousand) Imperial lives**.

 **Hope you enjoy.**

 **A/N: sorry for some of the grammar mistakes in the story so far. Auto correct is more of a liability than an asset if you ask me.**

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _New Seoul's moon. Imperial Occupation._

Agent Kallus watched as Imperial forces tried to fight off a massive Sangheili offensive.

The Empire had prepared for a serious fight.

Trenches had been dug up, turrets and mortars had been step, and several dozen Imperial hover tanks were entrenched in a reverse slope position, concealing their main body.

Imperial tanks fired at large mortar tanks that were far away. But the 'Wraith' tanks continued dropping large balls of plasma on the Imperial positions. Banshees and Seraph fighters screeched by, dropping their fuel rod explosives, or strafing the Imperial positions with superheated plasma. Tie fighters were sent up to meet them. Banshees and Ties were soon caught in a deadly dance for control of the moon.

Kallus walked through the trenches on his way to the command center.

He saw Imperial troopers running through the trenches in the opposite direction, forcing him to move to the side and let them through.

He also saw one Imperial stormtrooper with a cauterized stump where his leg used to be. The trooper was carried off to a field hospital in the rear trenches.

When Kallus got to the command center, he saw Brigadier General Nevar looking over a holo-map of the region.

"Ah, Agent Kallus. I'm so glad that you could join us," Nevar said sarcastically.

"I'm here to make a review of your defenses". Kallus said as he looked over the holo-map.

"Well I believe that you will find that our defenses are quite impenetrable," Nevar said.

"Be careful general. This hasn't exactly been a good week for our forces on the ground," Kallus advised.

"Nonsense. We will push these primitives out of the system and force them to come to the negotiating tables," Nevar said. Whether with confidence or arrogance, Kallus couldn't tell. But he wouldn't bet against the latter.

"Sir there's something dropping down from orbit. I can't tell what they are," one control operator called out.

The three objects were encased in a fire ball from atmospheric re-entry.

They came down like balls of fire. But they eventually crashed into the surface, behind where the Sangheili had landed earlier.

Kallus looked through a pair of binoculars. The objects started to move. They were massive. They looked like red-orange crabs with glowing green faces that walked on powerful jointed legs. There were also turrets attached to their backs.

They stomped their way across the battlefield towards the Imperial trenches.

They were half way across the field when they all halted. They dug their feet into the soil, as if bracing themselves, before they each fired a powerful green beam.

Each plasma beam moved along the trenches, like a massive destructive eraser. Every Imperial tank along the front that wasn't dug in was melted, while the Infantry were completely vaporized.

As the three massive walkers continued their trek across the field, under a desperate storm of Imperial firepower, Nevar and Kallus lowered the binoculars from their terrified faces.

Kallus looked at Nevar. "You were saying General?"

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _New Seoul's moon, Sangheili attack force, lead phantom_.

Arbiter stood near the open gravity lift in the center of the Phantom's crew bay.

It was filled with red armored Elites from the Swords of Sangheilios and their Grunt comrades.

It was strange. Thel Vadam had been ashamed after the War against Humanity. But now he was about to take up arms against other humans.

The Universe was full of...unusual surprises.

He walked to the front of the crew bay and turned to the warriors in his phantom.

"Warriors, we are here to fight alongside our comrades from Earth. We are helping them drive back a terrible enemy from their shores. Now I know what you are thinking. Why are we fighting the Empire. This so called Empire has no honor. They tread upon innocent people. And they oppress those that they have conquered. If we do not help our human brethren drive them out, then we will one day suffer a similar fate. This fight is for our homes, our families, our freedom, and our honor. Your clans will write battle poems of this day. And your endeavors will be carved into the walls of your keeps. For Sangheilios!" Arbiter said as he raised his fist in the air.

"For Sangheilios!" the elites repeated.

"For Balaho!" the grunts shouted, thinking of their home world, which had become an ally for the Empire in exchange for power and resources. But grunts that sided with the elites believed that the Empire couldn't be trusted and were just another Covenant.

They would never be slaves again.

The scarabs had stomped their way through the front lines. Now it was time for the Arbiter and his men to take over the rest of the base.

When the hatches opened, the elites and grunts poured out of the phantom. The Arbiter took the lead.

He activated his sword, the _Prophet's Bane_ , which was the same one that he had used to silence the treacherous Prophet of Truth.

They charged at the terrified Imperials and began their onslaught.

If any stormtrooper feared the UNSC, then they were in for a world of shock and pain with the Sangheili.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Pelican Charlie 175, en route to the Imperial occupied capital city_.

The Pelican carrying Sierra 117 was taking heavy fire.

"Cortana, can we get any Naval fire support down here?" the spartan asked.

"We can't. Imperial reinforcements have arrived. Our friends upstairs are pretty busy. But from what I can tell from the Imperial Battlenet, they're terrified and desperate," Cortana explained.

"A desperate enemy is still a threat," Chief said simply.

The Empire had a Star Destroyer hovering over the city. If the UNSC fleet could help, then it wouldn't have been a problem. But the Empire had sent in a large fleet to deal with the UNSC/Sangheili counter-offensive.

The large Imperial battlewagon threw up a layer of AA flak so thick that you could step on it and not fall right through.

Pelicans were being taken down left and right.

One pelican that was right in front of the Chief's was carrying a warthog.

The warthog was hit and it was disconnected from the pelican. It flew right towards the Charlie 175.

"SSgt. O'Reilly. Evasive maneuvers, now!" Cortana ordered the pilot. "On it ma'am!" the pilot responded.

The Marine pilot banked hard left and just narrowly avoided the flying jeep.

"Shit that was close!" The co-pilot, Sgt. Nichols, said.

As several more Pelicans were shot down, a voice came in over the Master Chief's helmet set.

"Chief. It's Linda. We're down a third of the strike force. And the rest of Blue team's been grounded. What do you to do?" Linda said.

Blue Team was the team of Spartans that Chief led. It consisted of 3 spartan-II's. Linda-058 the sniper, Fred-104 the CQC expert, Kelly-087 the scout, along with 5 spartan-III's. The III's were Tom B292 and Lucy 091 of Beta company, and Ash G099, Mark-G313, and Olivia G291 of Gamma company.

They were pretty good separately. But together, they were unstoppable.

"Circle back and rally the rest of Blue team. We'll move on to the city in the meantime," Chief said.

"Copy that Chief. See you soon," Linda said.

"Affirmative. Cortana, contact the rest of the strike force and tell them to hold back until we've cleared out that AA," Chief instructed his AI companion.

"Got it. Take us down pilot," Cortana ordered. "Yes Ma'am," SSgt. O'Reilly replied.

He and Nichols brought the Pelican down to tree top level in order to avoid the AA. 6 others followed.

They landed on the edge of the city.

"Good luck out there spartan," the crew chief, Corporal Robertson said.

The Hell-jumpers piled out of the dropships.

"Lt. Delaney. You and your men head for your assigned objectives. We'll head for the Forward Operating Base," Cortana instructed the ODST officer.

"Yes ma'am," Delaney said before shoving off with the rest of his troopers.

The Chief passed through the ruined city streets.

They were occupied by UNSC Marines that looked like they've been through the wringer.

Many marines hunkered down where they were. Some tried to catch sleep, while other tried to heat up their MRE packs.

One group of Marines looked up at the Spartan as he moved through the UNSC held streets.

"Holy Shit!" one silently exclaimed.

"Huh, I guess the Brass really do care about us," another said.

"Awwhhh yyeeaahhh! The Imp's are in trouble now," another one chimed in.

He then passed though an aid station.

There were corpsmen treating as many of the wounded as possible. Most of the Marines here were in critical condition. All of the walking wounded were sent straight back to the front. Blood had pooled out everywhere. Some Marines were missing limbs or had pieces of shrapnel lodged into their faces.

"Somebody get me some morphine," one Marine complained.

"I'm calling it. Time of death is 1735," one corpsman said , looking over a dead Marine that he failed to revive.

"Let's make sure that we can save the rest," Cortana said to the Chief through his mind.

Cortana had been by the Chief's side since the Fall of Reach. When he thought that he lost her to rampancy while fighting the Didact, he was devastated. But after he rescued her now immortal self from the Forerunner planet Genesis during the Created Event, things were all back to normal.

Chief nodded.

It was like the Covenant war all over again. But at least this time, it was in Mankind's favor for the most part.

The Empire wasn't glassing planets out of fear of losing valuable resources, and potential slave labor. They were inferior on a technological level (To the Covenant at least), professional level, and experience level. And like the Covenant war, the Empire didn't know the location of most of Human space.

Chief continued through the camp until he found the command center.

General Capone was the leader of the Marine forces in the city. He stood near the window of a ruined building, which was the command center for his defensive operation. It had Snipers, 50 cal. machine guns, AT teams, and mortar units protecting it.

"Sir, our forward positions are being overrun by Imperial stormtroopers. We won't be able to hold out for much longer," a Marine officer explained.

"General Capone sir," Cortana said.

Capone turned around to see a spartan in his presence.

He was in his early 60's and had a look that could pierce through the armor of a battlecruiser.

His men likened him to a modern day Chesty Puller. He'll rip a stormtrooper's spine out of his ass and beat his comrades with it before he gets tough.

"A spartan? Well holy shit. You're not the armored regiment that I asked for. But I guess you'll have to do. I need someone that'll make Satan shit himself and run. Congradulations son, 'cause you're it," the Marine General said.

"Where do you need us sir?" Cortana asked.

"I've got Imperial forces knocking on my front door. I need you at the front lines. Assist those Marines and push them out of the city! Hurry!" Capone ordered.

"Aye Aye Sir," Cortana said. "This way Chief," she said as she activated a motion tracker on his HUD that pointed him in the direction of their objective.

The Chief headed for the area in question.

A Marine was waiting at the bottom of a flight of stairs that led to the 2nd floor of a Hotel complex.

"Sir, Corporal Ramirez, A Company, our position is this way. Lt. Vasquez got hit and sent to the field hospital just under an hour ago," the corporal said as he started up the stairs.

"Who's in charge now Corporal?" Cortana asked.

The corporal stopped and turned around to face the chief.

"Uh, Sgt. Jackson ma'am. He's my NCO (noncommissioned officer), and he's up top. Come on, I'll show you," Ramirez said as he turned back to run up the stairs.

The Chief followed the Corporal through the building.

The building was well protected by UNSC Marines, who occupied the buildings to through some Hell down on the Imperials outside.

One Marine was manning a 50 Cal. that was set up in the windows. The Machine gun chattered as the Marine held down the triggers. "Come on you bastards, I've got enough for all of you!" he shouted down at the Imperials below.

"Easy on that thing man, we've only got two belts left," another Marine told him.

Ramirez stopped near an open door that led to a walk way with a balcony. There was another Marine taking cover there.

"Hey Roycewicz. Is it clear?" Ramirez asked the Marine on the balcony. Suddenly, there was an explosion that took a chunk out of the concrete balcony barely three feet from Pvt. Roycewicz.

"You tell me!" the marine shouted back.

"Fuck! All right, the Chief needs to get through. And we're gonna help him. 3, 2, 1, Covering Fire!" Ramirez said as every Marine exploded from cover, shooting up the streets below and keeping the stormtroopers under cover.

Master Chief moved along the balcony to get to Sgt. Paul Jackson.

He was taking cover on a platform that had several stair cases that led up to it. There was also another 50 cal. set up on the platform.

The Marine gunner was blasting away at anything that got to close.

Jackson was using his rifle on any target of opportunity.

He then turned around and saw the chief standing nearby.

"When I asked for reinforcements, I didn't think they'd send a spartan," the sergeant said.

A powerful explosion ripped through the plaza nearby.

"Shit, here come's another wave. Let 'em have it!" Sgt. Jackson shouted to his men.

All along the balcony of the hotel complex, Marines rallied to repel the attackers.

Imperial Stormtroopers charged forward, trying to wrestle control of the building, that was so close to the Command tent, from the UNSC.

"Come on spartan, show these plastic boys how it's done," Cortana said enthusiastically.

The BR-55 on Chief's back was raised up by the magnetic clamps so that he could reach for the grip and grab it more easily. He flipped off the safety, switched the fire mode over to semi-auto, and then brought the rifle to bare on the stormtroopers below.

He sighted up on the sea of targets below. He then started sending 9.5x40mm armor piercing rounds down range. He was deadly with any weapon in the UNSC arsenal and it showed. The Chief fired rounds repeatedly at the advancing Imperials. Of coarse, they weren't advancing after he was done with them.

He continued firing on the crowd of stormtroopers, and they continued to drop like flies.

They were harder to kill than Unggoy grunts, but not that much.

He shouldered the rifle and switched to his M7 SMGs. He fired the automatic weapons and sent pistol cartridges down at the Imperials.

His motion tracker radar showed a line of yellow dots neatly lined up behind him. These represented the Marine defenders. He also saw a sea of red dots in front of where he stood. It represented the stormtroopers that were attacking the plaza. Between himself and the Marine defenders, mostly him, the red dots began to disappear one by one.

Then, he saw a cluster of red dots slowly creep their way up the staircase behind him. Without even thinking or turning around, he pulled an M2 fragmentation grenade from one of his grenade pouches. He continued to fire one of the SMGs with his right hand while using his left hand to toss the grenade over his shoulder down the staircase behind him.

He heard screaming.

"Stang! A grenade," one stormtrooper shouted.

Then came the explosion.

And finally, the red dots on his motion tracker faded away.

He pulled out his second SMG and started using both of the small automatic weapons again.

Suddenly, artillery began to rain down on the building that they were trying to defend. The Marine gunner on the platform with the Chief and Jackson was shot dead, his body resting on the machine gun emplacement.

Without thinking, the Chief jumped on the gun emplacement after gently resting the fallen Marine on the deck.

The gun chattered away and more Imperial troopers charged into their doom.

Jackson pulled a walkie-talkie from the body of a dead Specialist.

"Command. I got enemy artillery raining down on my position. If we don't some air support on those emplacements, then I won't have a building to hold, much less a platoon to defend it with! Dammit, is there anyone on this freq.?" the sergeant yelled into the radio set.

" _This is Major Reid, I copy that sergeant. Longswords are inbound imminent,_ " the voice on the other side said.

Just then, a flight of two Longswords flew over the plaza in the direction that the enemy artillery was coming from. They dropped their bombs on an unseen target. Then there was a powerful explosion.

" _Verify delivery of ordnance on target, over_?" Major Reid said over the radio.

"Good effect on target, enemy battery has been knocked out," a wounded Jackson said into the radio set.

"Sergeant. You and your men stay here and hold this position. I'll head into the city center." Chief asked.

"OK. But I'm sending 2nd squad to secure the perimeter. Can you make sure this place is locked down before you leave?" Jackson asked?

The Chief nodded before moving down into the plaza below. The Marines followed him.

They moved towards a building that was horribly damaged. There was a hole that was ripped into the building. It looked like it led to the other side.

The Chief headed inside. But then a hail of red plasma hit his shields. They glowed gold for a second as they recharged.

"Looks like they're dug in," one Marine said.

"Let's clear them out. But don't bring the place down in the process. I still need to get through," the Chief said.

The Marine corporal in charge smiled before producing a flashbang from his grenade pouch.

He tossed it into the hole and it went off.

The Chief went around the corner and sprayed the space with his dual SMG's.

All of the stormtroopers lay dead at his feet.

He moved forward while the marines stayed behind to guard the plaza.

"We'll hold this area Chief. Give 'em Hell for us!" The Marine Corporal called.

He came out on the other side of the building just above the streets. It was crowded with Imperial infantry. They fired up at him, forcing him to take cover and recharge his shields.

He then heard the whine of several engines and the chattering of several 50 cal. machine gun turrets.

Chief exited his cover to see a squadron of seven warthogs (four regular, 3 guass) come out of nowhere. They mowed down several stormtroopers before ramming into them with their bumpers.

The spartan jumped down into the street.

"Special delivery from General Capone Master Chief," the driver, Corporal Travis, of one of the guass hogs said. The " _mini mac_ " turret was empty, so the Chief jumped in.

"What's your mission marine?" Cortana asked.

"Empire's in disarray. They're falling back to the city center to regroup for a possible counter attack. General Capone wants us to hit them before that can happen, and make it easier for your strike force to enter the city," the marine explained.

"Then let's not let him down," Cortana said.

"Punch it," the Chief ordered.

The tires screeched against the pavement before it took off to the front of the convoy in the direction of the city-center.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _New Seoul's moon_.

Thel and his Sangheili warriors charged at the Empire's trenches.

The split chinned aliens were quite fast for their size.

Imperial forces were in their trenches as they fired their weapons at the charging monstrosities.

Despite the Empire's heavy firepower, they couldn't slow the Sangheili down.

Plasma bolts splashed against their shields. Some of their shields collapsed after enough focus fire, allowing the Empire to down a few of their armored adversaries. It didn't work, as the Sangheili charged forward on their powerful armored legs.

Most of the stormtrooper jumped out of the trenches to run in the opposite direction.

But the others stood to fight for their Emperor. But of coarse, dying for an old man was't enough motivation to fight a determined and experienced adversary.

The Sangheili jumped into the trenches with the stormtroopers, their blades swinging wildly.

Stormtroopers were cut apart into charred pieces.

The survivors ran out of their trenches. They were gunned down by the grunts that were following the elites.

Arbiter held a stormtrooper by his throat. He struggled in the Arbiter's powerful grip, pathetically.

He snorted as he drew his energy sword back, the twin tips hovered near the stormtrooper's chest.

"Please don't," the trooper begged through a strained voice. Both of their faces were masked. But only one of them had visible terror strewn across their face.

Arbiter plunged the blade forward into the trooper's chest, piercing and cooking his heart.

The trooper died in the Arbiter's hand.

He withdrew his blade when the trooper was done twitching.

He then threw him to the ground before shouting a terrifying growl.

"Hunt to the last. The Empire tell stories of this day. The day that we struck fear into their souls. The day that they would regret trespassing into our galaxy!" Thel Vadam shouted to his warriors.

They raised their bladed fists in the air with a mighty battle cry.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Imperial moon base_.

Agent Kallus moved through the base with a squad of Imperial death trooper. They were elite black ops stormtroopers that were hand chosen by Palpatine's inquisitors for their loyalty, skill, and ruthlessness.

Imperial hover tanks were also on the move. They wanted to push the elites back.

The ISB agent had his Bo rifle at the ready. He pulled it from the body of a dead Lasat during the destruction of their race.

He used it for missions that he led personally. He even modified it for close quarters combat.

"Remember, their shields go down from concentrated fire. You'll need to focus your fire on them one at a time for them to go down," Kallus said.

They formed the secondary defense line as they saw Imperial forces being gunned down in their retreat from the primary defense line.

"No cowards will be tolerated in the Emperor's army. Kill them!" General Nevar, who had accompanied, ordered. Every trooper fired their weapons at the fleeing stormtroopers.

The retreating stormtroopers had two options: Imperial plasma, or Sangheili plasma.

Soon they were all dead.

White armored bodies littered the ground. They then shift their aim towards the advancing Sangheili. Imperial forces rained down murderous fire down on the Sangheili.

Grunts were blown off their feet and Elites shields were overloaded before they fell. But the Elites kept moving.

They were followed by grunts and six massive armored creatures that stomped their way towards the trenches.

The massive creatures sounded off a terrifying roar in unison.

They held their ground, hunkered down behind their large arm shields, and aimed their green glowing arms at the Imperial positions.

A whining sound came in as powerful beams of energy pierced into the sky and connected with the Imperial tanks. They all exploded.

That's when the grunts and elites charged.

Kallus watched as the Sangheili forces charged at the Empire. He turned to Nevar.

"I have to inform the Empire of this new development. Hold them here for as long as you can," Kallus said before he ran off to his shuttle.

"Kallus, get back here and stand your grou-Aaahhhh!" Never tried to say.

The ISB agent turned to see the general be lifted into the air by an elite with bronze armor with red stripes. Nevar was then cut in half by that figure's orange sword.

The remains were tossed aside.

The Arbiter and Kallus locked eyes for a moment. in that moment, Kallus felt something that he rarely felt towards an enemy (he usually reserves it for his superiors): Fear.

Chaos irrupted in the trenches.

Kallus ran off and boarded his shuttle.

"General's orders. Get us out of the system!" Kallus lied. It seemed to work as the death troopers standing guard went and warmed the shuttle up.

It took off away from the battle and away from the system.

 _I fear that I've just witnessed the end of the Empire's unrivaled power, _Kallus thought to himself.

 **xxxxxxxxxxx**

 _New Seoul's capital city. West side of the river. Warthog convoy accompanying Sierra 117_.

The warthog charged through the city at speedy pace.

Pockets of Imperial forces were scattered all over the place and they were beating a hasty, and un-orderly, retreat.

The Warthogs that were armed with the 50 cal. chain guns gunned down any Imperial troopers that were unlucky enough to meet the charging viechles.

Some were run over by their bumpers.

"That better buff out," Travis said as he ran over another retreating stormtrooper.

The Chief hung onto the Guass cannon on the back of the lead warthog. But he also pulled out an SMG to spray some of the fleeing troopers.

He scanned his sectors with the weapon, looking for signs of any Imperial movement in the area. So far there was nothing except the scattered and retreating infantry.

That's when Cortana spoke up over the radio in Chief's helmet to speak to the other warthogs.

" _Alert: Imperial viechles detected. They're moving east towards the city center. Recommend immediate pursuit_ ," Cortana said.

"Affirmative. Corporal!" The Chief shouted to the Marine driving his hog.

"On it," he said as he accelerated the warthog. The others followed.

The seven viechles rounded a corner and spotted just under half a dozen Imperial troop carriers, escorted by several speeder bikes.

The Imperial troop carriers looked like gray bricks. They had a rotating turret on top of each of them.

"That convoy's in a real hurry Chief. Don't let them go," Cortana exclaimed to the other Marines.

The Chief nodded. The Marines shouted out 'URRAH' in unison as the Warthogs screamed down the road to the fleeing Imperial forces.

They gained on the Imperial transports. That's when they started firing.

"Guass hogs, focus on transports. Everyone else take the hover bikes!" Chief ordered.

The chain guns on 4 of the hogs chattered away at the speeder bikes. The bikers noticed them. One pilot was shot in the heart. He fell off his bike, which careened into the side of a street, exploding inside a shoe store.

The speeder bike riders fired their pistol occasionally to through off the hogs. But the turrets fired first.

The three guess hogs fired away. The magnetically propelled projectiles pierced through the armor of the rear tank.

It choked smoke and burst into flames before coming to a stop.

"Must've hit something sensetive," Cortana said to the chief.

"Corporal! Take the next off ramp. We'll hit 'em from the overpass and try to cut them off up ahead," Chief ordered.

"Copy that Chief," Corporal Travis said as he merged right and up the ramp. They took the parallel street overlooking the convoy and gunned the engine.

Chief turned his cannon to the left and started hitting the enemy viechles from the side.

The other warthogs were taking a pounding. One of the guass hogs and a regular one were hit by the Troop transport's roof cannons. One burst into flames, while the other received splash damage from the Imperial plasma. The tires melted and popped, forcing the driver to decelerate and come to a stop.

The remaining hogs pressed the attack and took out a tank and three speeders.

The Chief's hog moved at top speed to cut off the transports.

They moved around a corner and out themselves in front of narrow street. The transports had no where to go except the Chief's hog.

He fired his mini mac and punched through the cockpit. The tank's front exploded and stopped. But the other two pushed the other one out of the way.

Corporal Travis threw the jeep in reverse and gunned the engine, getting out of the way just in time.

The other hogs joined them and they continued the pursuit.

More speeders came in from above. They harassed the regular hogs. But that only pissed off the Marine gunners as they shot down several more speeder bikes.

"Hit 'em hard!" Chief barked as he and the other guass hog gunner opened up on the two remaining transports.

They exploded and stopped. Burning Stormtroopers stumbled out of the remains.

"Don't waste your ammo Marines. Let 'em burn!" Corporal Travis ordered.

"Nice job Marines. Now let's keep...Enemy Drop ships incoming!" Cortana exclaimed.

Three drop ships flew over the five hogs while going in the same direction.

They started strafing the street below. A couple of Marines were hit. The gunner on a regular hog and the passenger of another. They fell from their hogs, dead.

Master Chief and the other guass gunner fired up at the lead dropship. They hit the engines in the back. It caught fire and trailed smoke. Before it could crash into a building, two Imperial Purge Troopers jumped out.

The two hulking battle droids landed on the hood of both remaining guess hogs.

One purge trooper used both of his arms to throw both the driver and passenger out both sides of the hog. It crashed in a street fight as the Purge trooper jumped off. The gunner was thrown free and hit a wall in bloody fashion.

Chief's hog now had a crushed engine. Travis and the Marine passenger fired their firearms at the Purge trooper on their hood. That's when chief used the cannon to put a round straight through its head. It fell back and over the front of the hog, before caught underneath the hog, which was forced to stop.

Flames began to rise from the hog's engines.

"Marines. Dismount right now," Chief ordered.

Travis and the other marine ran back to the three remaining hogs.

Chief rotated the turret to face the remaining purge trooper.

That's when he saw a rocket, fired from the purge trooper's shoulder cannon, sailing into the air towards him.

John-117 dove away from the hog as the missile incinerated the cannon that he had been mounted on.

The Chief grabbed his rifle and charged at the droid at full speed.

When the Chief went through the augmentation process when he was a teen, his bones had become unbreakable, his senses, his physical, and mental capacity improved exponentially.

He was a super-human. Add on the half ton suit of armor and the AI in his brain, he was not only the best soldier, he was the ultimate soldier.

Just like his brothers and sisters in the Spartan program.

He charged at the massive droid.

It fired its blasters at the charging human tank.

But it was no use.

Chief lunged forward and tackled the droid to the group. They scraped against the pavement for about 20 feet when they came to a complete stop.

When the Chief got back up and looked down at the droid.

It was severely damaged, with cracked casings and exposed wiring.

But it was still alive. It was still a potential threat.

The Chief fired his BR-55 at the fallen machine's damaged areas. He dumped a whole 36 round mag into the machine but it still kicked.

He then bent over and repeatedly punched the droid, caving its face in. It stopped kicking a few seconds later.

The two dropships from earlier circled back and sprayed the street with blaster bolts.

Several speeder bikes were also heading down the street.

The chief switched to his dual SMGs. He fired them at a few speeders, but they were to quick. That's when one of them was heading straight for him.

"Wait for it..." Cortana said.

The Chief jumped up and onto the speeder, in front of the shocked driver.

"..Nice!" Cortana complimented.

In one swift motion, the Chief spun around and kicked the driver off of his seat. He flew off screaming before he hit the pavement. He wasn't screaming after that.

He then took over the bike.

"Do you know how to drive this thing?" Cortana asked.

"I do now," Chief said.

He gunned the engine and headed down the street.

"Those Marines won't stand a chance. Draw off those gunships," Cortana ordered.

The Chief fired the bike's cannons.

He downed two speeder bikes. He then stopped and fired at both of the dropships before they could go after Corporal Travis and the three remaining warthog's.

They spotted the spartan and went after him. They fired their weapons as they went. The speeders followed.

"Marines. I'll move on from here. Get yourselves back to base," Chief ordered.

"Roger that Master Chief. Good luck out there. And give the Empire our regards," Corporal Travis said.

"Affirmative," the Chief said as he continued down the streets.

One of the gunships went to street level to fire on the spartan.

The other dropship fired on a billboard that was hanging over the street. He was trying to block, or maybe even crush, the spartan.

The spartan gunned the engine and sped past the falling sign, which swung down and smashed the low flying gunship into the side of the street. It crashed and burned.

It also took out all but one of the speeders.

"Maybe the Empire should stop trying to be clever. It'll be the death of them," Cortana said.

Chief just kept going. He came up on a traffic tunnel. The gunship flew over the tunnel in order to try and cut him off.

The lone Imperial speeder followed.

As the spartan and his AI companion sped trough the tunnel, they came up on the exit, witch was starting to close.

Chief didn't slow down.

"Chhhiiieeeeff?!" Cortana said, with concern.

"Hang on!" he said.

As the door began to close, the gunship from earlier hovered in front of the hatch.

Chief jumped off of the speeder, just as the door close. He skidded across the pavement of the waterfront highway, which looked out over the massive river that divided the city in two.

The door smashed the back of the speeder, but the front was still moving.

Its momentum carried the speeder forward into the gunship. It pierced through it's cockpit and exploded inside the ship, killing the pilots.

The gunship spun out of control and crashed into the highway.

The speeder from earlier crashed into the closed door.

Chief's adversaries were now neutralized.

"Bingo! There's the cruiser. Now all we need to-do-is..." Cortana started to say when several drop pods shot out of the Star destroyer.

All of the pods screamed through the air towards Chief's position.

They crashed into the pavement all around the spartan, who aimed his SMGs at the new contact.

For a moment nothing happened. But then they depressurized and popped open.

Each pod had a figure inside each of them. They were Sith commandoes. They looked like Palpatine's royal guards, but they were dressed in black.

Each trooper was armed with a staff that had a laser bayonet on the ends.

They had the chief surrounded and they inched closer to him.

John put away one of his SMGs. He pulled a Covenant plasma grenade out of his grenade pouch.

Bet 'cha can't stick it," Cortana said.

Chief primed the grenade. It glowed blue.

"Your on," he said as he lunged towards the nearest commando.

The trooper tried to spear him with his laser staff, but the chief dodged it. He placed the sticky grenade on its back.

The sith trooper struggled to reach for it, but the chief kicked him into a pair of commandoes. The grenade exploded, vaporizing all three.

Three down, four to go.

Two other guards lunged forward. The chief somersaulted over both of them.

They looked up in surprise.

When the chief was upside down in midair, he fired both of his SMGs at the Sith troopers.

They fell to the ground and died in pools of their own blood.

The remaining two guards charged at him, staffs forward.

He let them come.

When they were close enough, Chief grabbed their staffs from them and stabbed both of them through the heart in a swift motion.

All seven attackers were dead.

That's when one more pod came out of no where. It popped open to reveal a human with buzz cut black hair, who looked to be in his mid twenties. He activated a red lightsaber and held it in a reverse grip.

He wore armored plates and a cloak.

The Chief and the buzzcut human looked at each other.

Suddenly, in a swift motion, the blade wielding human raised his hand and shot lightning out of it.

It travelled in the direction of the chief.

As a spartan, Chief has a quick reaction time. He pulled a shield generator from his belt and threw it to the ground.

It produced a yellow transparent bubble that surrounded John. The lightning couldn't get through.

The shield was engulfed in blue and purple.

The buzz cut human stopped shooting lightning.

Both figures stared at each other.

"So? You're the super soldier that has been making a fuss," Starkiller said as he looked around at the dead sith troopers. "I'm not impressed".

The shield dropped and the Chief fired his SMGs at the human.

Starkiller, who couldn't use his blade to deflect bullets, sprinted to the side behind a semi truck.

The Chief then started throwing frag grenades at the Inquisitor.

He used the force to throw them all back. Both grenades landed near the chief. He vaulted over cover, but the blast drained his shields.

The Chief reloaded both of his SMGs and headed around the truck as his shields recharged.

As he went around the truck, he raised his guns.

But there was no one there.

"Where did he go? Wait! Above You!" Cortana shouted.

He then heard a battle cry from above. He looked up and saw the Inquisitor jumping down with his blade pointed down.

The Chief dodged an jumped back as Starkiller plunged his blade into the ground and used the force to emit a powerful shockwave that sent the spartan hurling back.

Starkiller got up and used the force to push chief against a wall.

John couldn't move.

Starkiller then walked up to him and placed the tip of his blade at the spartan's throat. He placed one palm on his chest and used the force to keep John where he was.

"Well it's been quite an experience spartan. Your people have impressed me. But if we can't have this system, then I can at least keep the armor of humanity's greatest hero as a trophy. Now I'm afraid that you'll have to die," Starkiller taunted.

"Gah, Cortana?" Chief asked while struggling to break free. "On it," she said.

Suddenly, the Chief's shields flared to life, only Cortana was using it to administer a powerful electrical discharge.

Electricity passed through Starkiller's body, forcing him to jump back and drop his saber as he screamed.

When he was done spasming out, he used the force to pull his lightsaber back. That's when Chief pulled it out of the air and crushed it in his armored gauntlet.

Starkiller seethed with anger at the sight of his weapon being destroyed by a non-force wielder.

The Chief assumed a fighting stance, but Starkiller was in no mood.

He shot lightning into the Chief's suit. The Chief's muscles locked up and he he groaned in pain.

Starkiller then used the force to start crushing John's windpipe.

"John!" Cortana shouted. She was useless in this situation. She could only watch as her long time host began to suffocate.

"You will die Spartan. And your entire species will follow," Starkiller said.

The chief mustered all of the strength that he could to speak.

"You...You First!" Chief said to the now confused inquisitor.

The Chief swiftly pulled his last plasma grenade from his pouch and pressed it against Starkiller's chest plate.

He jumped back in terror, before releasing the spartan, as he looked down at the glowing grenade on his chest.

"NO! NO! NO!" Starkiller said as he ripped off his chest plate and threw it away. As he did so, it was too late. The blast engulfed him. Incinerating his hair and clothes, as well as leaving third degree burns all over his body.

Moments later, several MAC blasts pierced the clouds and slammed into the Imperial Star Destroyer. It burst into flames, belched smoke, and started to lose altitude before crashing into the outskirts of the city..

The Chief got back up a popped smoke for evac, after Cortana signaled a drop ship.

"You've done it again Chief. Just like on Halo, the Ark, Requiem, Genesis. I definitely made the right choice," Cortana said.

A pelican came by and landed. John walked aboard.

"Lucky me," he said as the Pelican took off.

They flew out over the city before heading up to the Infinity. Pillars of smoke rose from the buildings. It had been a hard fought battle. Humanity had earned its place in the universe. The Chief, as well as his fellow spartans and soldiers, would be damned if they let the that place be destroyed by the Empire.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Coastal Highway_.

Starkiller lay on the ground. He was as good as dead.

That's when a stealth ship uncloaked and unloaded a squad of Death Troopers.

They checked his vitals.

"He's alive. But barely. We need to get him into surgery ASAP," one trooper said.

"Alright. Load him onto the shuttle. Quickly! Our presence in this system's falling apart," the leader said.

They loaded Starkiller's critically damaged body onto the shuttle. They flew off and re-cloaked, leaving the Imperial military's most humiliating disaster behind.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _UNSC flagship, the Infinity_.

Lord Hood and Captain Thomas Lasky watched as Imperial Warships desperately tried to keep their foothold.

But it was in vain. The _Infinity_ , it's compliment of Paris class frigates, and Battle group Dakota (8 Autumn class heavy cruiser and a hand-full of smaller ships), continued to lay into Imperial warships, creating a vast field of floating debris.

The two barrels on the ship's bow exploded. They sent two powerful shells down range. Two Star-destroyers were gutted by the powerful MAC rounds.

A yellow holographic WWII pilot appeared on a pedestal.

It was Roland, the ship's AI.

"Sir's? I've intercepted an Imperial transmission. It was pretty easy actually. You know, their firewalls are more like wet paper towels?"

"Roland," Lasky pressed.

"Right. Sorry Captain. The Empire's flagship, the _Relentless_ , just sent out a call to retreat. They're heading home," Roland said.

The bridge crew cheered.

"Good work everyone," Hood said. The crew stifled themselves to listen to their fleet admiral. "Together, with our Sangheili allies, we've beaten the Empire back, and we've shown them that we're not like most other species. We are not going to sit down and take it. We have shown them our courage, devotion to duty, and skill in battle. And now it is time for us to prepare for the long haul. We are already building the materials and gathering the manpower with which we shall stop Palpatine and his evil empire. The Empire isn't going to give up so easily. But neither will we. We will meet them on every battlefield until Palpatine is kicked right off his thrown, and until we've driven the Empire into the graves that they've been so happily digging for themselves. It's time that we take the fight to the Empire, and then claim our rightful place in this galaxy!" Hood said.

The crew cheered again.

In that instant, Mankind was unstoppable.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Aratoht. Batarian fortress world. Imperial staging area_.

Kallus landed in a hanger bay.

He went to the communications room and got an audience with his superiors.

"So. We were completely routed from UEG space?" A holographic version of Governor Tarkin asked.

"Yes sir. We've completely underestimated the UNSC's skill and resolve. They also have formidable allies. I don't believe that this is the end of our troubles with the UNSC. And if word gets out of what they managed to accomplish-," Kallus said.

"It won't. And I am sending someone that will turn this temporary set back into victory," Tarkin said.

Suddenly, a new figure stood next to Tarkin.

This figure wore an all white naval uniform. He also had blue skin, black hair, and red eyes.

Kallus knew who it was.

"Do not worry agent Kallus. We will move forward for our Emperor until victory be won," said Grand Admiral Thrawn.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **And there is the end of Act I ladies and gents.**

 **That was a cool chapter, if I do say so myself.**

 **The Chief and Arbiter kicked ass and Admiral Thrawn is getting ready for action.**

 **Next time: the UNSC goes on the offensive, The exiled Galactic Republic and the Citadel races try to find out what's happening in the conflict.**

 **Hope you enjoyed, tune in next time for 'They Shall Not Pass'.**

 **This is Grubkiller, over, under, and out.**


	8. Chapter 8-secrets

**Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.**

 **Hey folks. Here's the beginning of this story's second act.**

 **Hope that you enjoy.**

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _SSV Normandy. On patrol near (UNSC/Batarian/Citadel space) border, a few days after the events on New Seoul_.

Commander Jane Shepard, XO of the _Normandy_ , stood behind the ship's pilot.

The experienced, and curvaceous, naval officer of System's Alliance fleet, and who was also a veteran of the Human-Covenant War as she served with the UNSC during the Fall of Reach, watched as the ship that she served aboard patrolled the area near Batarian space.

She was also a veteran of the secession wars. That was when the System's Alliance was created after it seceded from UEG space and join the Citadel Races.

Like many people who sympathize with insurrectionists, she believed that the UEG had become far too Xenophobic, Imperialistic, and that the Covenant war was started because Humanity expanded too far. She also wanted to leave the UNSC, fight for the System's Alliance, and join the galactic community.

She thought that everyone in UEG space would be ecstatic about joining the Citadel especially after the Human-Covenant war. But most humans, including her family, refused to recognize that decision and change for the greater good.

Jane was forced to be on the side of a war that was opposite of her twin brother, an ODST officer named Major. John Shepard.

He and the rest of the family considered her a sell out and that she never really cared about her own people, after just fighting in a war for Mankind's very existence. Jane, in turn, considered her family to be xenophobic right wingers **_(Warning: SJW alert! Prepare your anus!)_** that were stuck in the past.

Now she was here, patrolling territory that belonged to an ally of the Empire that was invading UEG space. She knew that her brother would be fighting them someplace.

"I don't know what the Council expects us to find out here. If we run into anything, it'll just be the UNSC getting their ass's handed to them," Joker said.

"The council and the brass want us out here to test the new stealth systems. It'll also give us a chance to keep an eye out for Imperial activity without being spotted," Lt. Kaiden Alenko, the commander of the Alliance Spec Ops Marines onboard, said to the skeptical pilot.

"Whatever it is, I feel like there's more to it than just that," Joker said.

"I agree. The council is up to something. I don't know what, but they are," Jane said.

Then the PA system buzzed.

" _Commander Shepard. Report to the comm room on the double_ ," the voice of Captain Anderson said.

"Well, duty calls. Keep an eye out for anything unusual Joker," Jane said as she went back to the comm room.

"Got nothing better to do Commander," the ship's wise-cracking pilot said.

Jane walked past the crew. She saw Navigations officer Presley checking the monitors. He was also conversing with the ship's chief engineer, Adams.

"What's a Council spectre doing on an Alliance shakedown cruise with a joint species team? Something's off," Presley said.

"Yeah. No kidding. And why would we be near the UNSC border when they're being invaded," Adams said in response.

They then saw Jane walk by and they both threw her a crisp salute that she returned.

The ship's medic, Doctor Chakwas, was speaking to a young rookie trooper, PVT. Jenkins, just outside the comm room.

"I hope that we get to see some action Doc," Jenkins said.

"I sincerely hope that your kidding. This 'action' usually ends with me patching you up in the med bay," Chakwas said sternly.

That's when she entered the door to the comms room.

Captain Anderson, wearing his Alliance dress blues, and a Turian Spectre, named Nihlus, along with three members of the joint species team, were speaking to each other.

Anderson was a Covenant and secessionist war veteran. He fought the for the UNSC and then against it. He was a hero that anyone would follow.

Nihlus was leading a joint species team to accompany Anderson and the Normandy on its shakedown tour near the UNSC-Batarian border.

That team included Asari scientist Liara T'soni, an expert on Forerunner culture/tech/language, a Quarian tech expert named Tali 'Zorah nar Rayya, and a Turian Spec ops commander/marksman, named Garrus Vakarian, who's been trying to get inside UNSC space for weeks.

He's been tasked with taking his 'Archangel team' to investigate the conflict in further detail. He's lost over half of his team to ONI agents and Imperial Spec Ops.

Liara is on the team because she believes that the Empire wants to try and find Forerunner technology, so she's been placed on the team because of her knowledge. She's also a former Asari soldier and is skilled in Biotic combat in the field, as are all Asari due to the high amounts of element zero on their planet. Liara was also, like most people in her all female species, very beautiful. She had an incredible rack and a well-trimmed stomach, as well as nice curves where it counted. Jane noticed Lt. Alenko and Liara sneaking glances at one another since the mission began. She had a few ideas of what that meant, but then she decided that it wasn't her business.

"Shepard. How are things going?" The System's Alliance hero of the great secession war **(The war to break away from the UNSC and join the Citadel)** asked.

"Everything's all quiet now sir. Is there something wrong?" Jane asked.

Nihlus, Garrus, Liara, and Anderson looked at each other.

"Commander. This is more than a simple shakedown cruise," Anderson said.

"I knew it," Jane said.

The crew's suspicions have been confirmed.

"What's this all about?" She asked.

"The Empire has been in power for about six years in its own galaxy. For four of those years, they've been expanding into this galaxy. They've set up colonies, mining operations, and alliances with many of the local species. And now they are invading UNSC space," Nihlus said.

"This is big Shepard. The Empire's getting aggressive. The council believes that if the UNSC's defeated, then we're next," Anderson said.

"We also fear that the Empire will make a move to secure Forerunner technology across the galaxy," Liara said.

"The council wants to ascertain the situation by observing UNSC and Imperial activity. They want us to look for weaknesses and then decide whether or not they want to help fight in the war," Garrus said.

Jane was surprised by that.

 _Fight alongside the UNSC. The people that we rebelled against. Our sworn enemy. I guess the Empire has a way of bringing people together, no matter how much they hate each other_.

"And you guys are just okay with fighting alongside the UNSC?" Jane asked.

"After what the Empire did to my people, getting our own creations to drive us off of our home-world, I'll take anyone who hates the Empire as an Ally," the Quarian, Tali, said, referring to the Geth rising up against the Quarians, curtesy of the Empire.

"Besides, I'm sure when the Empire's gone we'll go back to hating and killing each other like always," Garrus joked.

"Weren't you the one who led that 'Archangel' squad into UNSC space during the invasion?" Shepard asked Garrus.

"Yeah. Lost a few good men to both sides. It's not a good subject to talk about," Garrus said.

Jane nodded in understanding.

"OK? So now what?" Shepard asked the group as a whole.

"We're going to continue scouting out the region and try to get inside the territory of both sides. See what's going on," Anderson said.

Then suddenly, the ship's PA system came online.

" _Captain. We've got company. An Imperial battlegroup is about to exit FTL (faster-than-light),_ " Joker said frantically.

The Captain sprang into action as a worried look was sprawled across everyone else's face.

"Put it on screen Joker!" Anderson ordered.

A screen lowered from the ceiling on the room's back wall. It showed everything that the ship's hull cameras could see.

The crew watched the screen closely.

Suddenly, an Imperial star destroyer and a few support ships came out of hyperspace.

They couldn't see the Normandy on a scanner. They could look out a window and see them, but the Normandy was hiding its heat sigs.

Scorch marks and hull breaches lined the hull of the Star-destroyer.

It's seen battle recently.

"They must be pulling away for repairs?" There's no way the Empire is retreating from the sector all together," Nihlus said.

Everyone silently agreed.

Suddenly, three blue portals were ripped into the fabric of space and time.

For a few seconds nothing happened.

Then an object came out of each portal. They were UNSC navy ships.

Two Marathon class cruisers and a paris class frigate.

All three ships were behind the Imperial task force.

Intercepted comm chatter from the Imperial ships came in over all frequencies.

" _They found us. Retreat!_ "

Yellow streaks of lightning exploded from their glowing bows.

All three streaks collided with the fleeing Star-destroyer.

A powerful explosion ripped through the ship.

The explosion ripped the ship apart and sent the debris flying in different directions.

Every UNSC ship turned its attention to the small support ships.

It wasn't even a fair fight, and the UNSC didn't even have to use their MACs.

Everyone aboard the Normandy watched, stunned.

" _Well Holy Shit! I guess the UNSC isn't getting its ass kicked as hard as I thought,_ " Joker said over the comm.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Bahak system, Batarian space, Planet Aratoht, Imperial staging area, ONI Prowler UNSC Silent Dagger, two weeks after the withdraw of all Imperial forces from UEG space_.

Lieutenant Commander Alisder Fyne looked out the viewport in deep thought as his cloaked ship moved through the system that served as the location of his target.

It's been over two weeks since the Empire had the shit kicked out of it during their failed siege along the UNSC's frontier worlds.

Ever since then, the UEG has been extending olive branches out to the Empire, which they've ignored.

Instead, the Empire went straight back to its same old crappy rhetoric.

The evil UNSC imperialists must be crushed to protect the just cause of the peace-loving Empire.

They just keep announcing that the Empire is preparing for a new invasion.

Of coarse, it was never okay to broadcast what you were going to do, because it'll make your enemies prepare for it.

It was mentioned earlier that the UNSC was extending branches of peace and co-operation to the Empire.

That was actually all a part of a carefully conceived ruse.

The UNSC was making it look like they were letting their guard down.

Instead, they were preparing for an offensive that would completely crush the Empire's allies, drive their forces out of the galaxy, and bring them to the negotiating table.

The terms of those negotiations? The complete and total withdraw of all Imperial forces from the Milky Way Galaxy.

UNSC Naval forces were preparing for an all out assault on the Empire's bases in the territory of its allies.

Before that would happen, ONI had sent several prowlers into enemy territory.

They deployed Force Recon Marines to the ground to collect intel and bring it back to ships like the _Silent Dagger_.

Intel wasn't necessary here, because the Empire had a fleet gathered here with one quarter of the Batarian Navy.

Cmdr. Fyne smiled.

 _This was one of the perfect targets to hit, in order to completely nuder the Empire's presence in the galaxy_.

An officer ran up to him.

He threw up a brisk salute that Fyne returned.

"Sir! Sgt. Maj. Thompson and his squad are on their way back from the mission," he said, referring to the Force Recon Marine squad that was on the surface of Aratoht.

"And?" Fyne asked, his hands clasped behind his back.

"They've deployed the 'package'," the officer said.

Fyne smiled.

"Good. Bring them aboard and let's get the Hell out of here. It's time for us to put the fear of God into these bastards," he said.

As the squad returned to the ship, allowing the ship to re-cloak, a device on the surface of the planet, and concealed in a cave where no one could find it, had a clock that was counting backwards from 45 minutes. It was down to 7 minutes now.

It was a NOVA bomb, a cluster of nine nuclear fusion warheads encased in a lithium triteride case. When the warheads are activated, the lithium triteride shell focuses the blast in upon itself, multiplying the destructive power by a hundred times. This gives the NOVA bomb an unprecedented payload for its size; the bombs are considered "planet killers" due to their destructive potential.

The most powerful weapon in the UNSC arsenal was about to be unleashed on the Empire and its batarian puppets.

Only 5 minutes to go.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Rebel Alliance corvette, Liberation, flagship of Phoenix Squadron, one week after Imperial retreat from UNSC space_.

Former Togrutan Jedi, and current Alliance Agent, Ahsoka Tano stood in a secret comm room in front of several holographic figures.

These figures were actually members of the Alliance High Council.

Some of these people she knew personally. Mon Mothma, Bail Organa, and even her lover, Lux Bonteri. Every member was once a politician for the Republic before the Empire took over.

Their voices were distorted and their images blurred in order to hide their identities from Imperial forces that might be listening in, if the transmission wasn't secured of coarse.

They led the growing rebel cell that were uniting to fight the Empire.

Ever since the Empire took over, Ahsoka has been leading a secret Intel organization that has been feeding intel to the Alliance's hidden HQ on Yavin 4.

She claimed that she built the organization on her own to assist Bail Organa in building the Rebel Alliance.

But none of them, not even Lux, knew who Ahsoka was really working for.

Ever since the Sith Empire came out of Exile and took over the Galaxy **(That story will be announced when I'm done with all of my stories. I'm gonna call it Return of the Sith)** , with Palpatine crowning himself Emperor, everyone thought that the Republic was destroyed during the war.

In reality, the Remnants of the Government, Jedi Order, and Grand Army **(Order 66 is prevented, I'm working on that CW/ROTS story right now. It's called the End is near.)** went into exile in a secret star system that is engulfed in a massive space storm.

Ahsoka was exiled with them, but a year later, she had created Project Fulcrum. She didn't do it from nothing. Instead, she had unlimited resources, curtesy of the Exiled Republic Government.

She called it Project Fulcrum. She and her agents worked alongside Republic stealth ships and Clone Commando teams to gather intel on the Empire, or other Rebel cells, and then give it to the Alliance.

Because of her efforts, the Alliance was soon ready for war. They would overthrow the Empire and the Republic in exile will reveal itself to reclaim control over the galaxy.

But Ahsoka and her agents weren't totally confident in the Alliance's abilities. She knew that they could make a dent, but not overthrow an Empire.

That was the purpose of this meeting. She believed that the Alliance, and the Republic, needed help to win this war.

The situation in the Milky way Galaxy could prove to be beneficial in the long run.

"Councilors. Just here me out. If we can get the UNSC to help us, then we would be able to put so much more pressure on the Empire," Ahsoka said.

The councilors all looked at each other. They were in the same place.

Every holographic figure looked back at Ahsoka.

" _I'm sorry Fulcrum. But we can't waste resources looking into this situation. The Empire has the entire region locked down for their invasion,"_ Bail Organa said in a distorted voice.

" _And what, may I ask, makes you so certain that the UNSC would be willing to help us in the first place?. They hated the Republic_ **(During the Clone Wars when the Republic discovered the Citadel, they provided aid to the Citadel in their war against the UNSC. In turn the UNSC provided covert aid to the CIS),** _so they'll hate the people trying to restore it,_ " Lux's holographic form said in a distorted voice as well.

"I understand that. But I'm just saying that we can at least see how they are faring against the Empire. We could use that intel to spread the word across the galaxy that the Empire can be defeated. After that, people will be stepping over each other to fight the Empire," Ahsoka explained.

Everyone looked at each other and then back at the 26 year old Togrutan.

" _I'm sorry Fulcrum. But we cannot afford to allocate resources for a mission that we believe is a waste of time. I'm afraid that we're going to have to deny your request,_ " Mon Mothma said to Ahsoka.

Ahsoka lowered her head a little in sadness before the holograms began to disappear.

The blue light that illuminated the dark room disappeared, shrouding the room in darkness. Ahsoka sighed and walked out of the room.

 _Why couldn't they listen. This would've been the perfect opportunity to look into the Empire's weaknesses and even build a powerful coalition to fight the Empire_.

That's when Ahsoka's comm link went off. She pressed a button on her wrist unit to speak into it.

"Tano here," she said.

" _Ahsoka. This is Sato. We have an incoming transmission for you,_ " Commander Jun Sato told her.

"Is it secure?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yes Ma'am," Sato confirmed.

"Thanks Commander. I'll take it in my quarters," Ahsoka said as she started heading for her room aboard the _Liberation_.

After walking through the ship's corridors for a few moments, she came up on her door. She pressed a few buttons on the keypad to open the door.

She shut the door, which closed with a _Hsss_ , and walked over to her private terminal.

Ahsoka activated it, and a familiar face appeared on the terminal's screen.

It was her longtime lover, Lux Bonteri, whom she just spoke to with the rest of the Alliance Council when they denied her request.

They met during the Clone Wars.

The young human had been dumbstruck by the young force wielder's incredible beauty, and increasingly curvaceous form, back then, and he still is today.

The two of them got together a couple months before it ended just after she re-united with her long lost family Shili, and during a crazy run in with a sith inquisitor, Barriss Offee, and the CIS **(Read My CW story 'Escaping the Past)**. The two young lovers got married just before the Sith Empire declared war on the Republic **(Return of the Sith)**. The war forced both of them apart before they could even have their honeymoon. Lux went back to Onderon to represent the planet in the senate, while Ahsoka went off to war with the famed and elite 501st Legion. When the Republic Government and Armed forces were routed, scattered, and crushed, its remnants escaped to Azura, with Ahsoka among them. Lux was still on Onderon when the Empire declared the war to be won and the Republic defeated.

He thought that he had lost her just after they got married. He mourned her with her family on Shili with a small funeral ceremony. The devastated senator remained in the senate and was eventually forced to move on, not knowing that Ahsoka was still alive. He got remarried to a woman of Imperial nobility and also gained a step-daughter. But he still went to Ahsoka's ' _grave_ ' every year with a bouquet of flowers and pay his respects.

But when Ahsoka re-entered his life after not seeing her for four years, he was happy at first. But he remembered that he had re-married. But the fact that Ahsoka was a secret agent for the rebel alliance (and even more secretly, the Republic remnant) caused a huge rift between him and his Imperial loyal 2nd wife, who wanted to turn Ahsoka in sense she was a rebel agent, and then accused Lux of having an affair with a 'terrorist bimbo' when he refused. They ended up divorcing. His ex-wife took the daughter away, and Lux went off to join Saw Gerrera's rebel cell, not just to fight for his home, but also as a slap to his ex-wife's authoritarian face. He then joined the Alliance's High Council along with Bail Organa and Mon Mothma.

At the same time he rekindled the romance that he once had with Ahsoka. The two of them met up every once in a while to make up for the time that they spend far apart, very intimately. They have yet to re-marry.

" _Ahsoka_!" Lux said. " _It's been too long my dear_ ".

"Hey Lux," Ahsoka said with her chin resting on her hands, which were propped up by her elbows.

" _So how's my little 'Soka been lately_?" Lux asked.

"Oh, I've been fine. Just giving the Alliance intel, knocking some Imperial heads together, waiting to re-unite with the man that I love. You know? The usual. I _was..._ just denied a mission that could've uncover information that would have changed the hearts and minds of the galaxy and give us an edge on the Empire. So that was fun," Ahsoka said, the sarcasm evident in her voice.

Lux's smile slowly disappeared and he lowered his head a little in shame.

" _I'm sorry Ahsoka. But you know that the Empire has access to the Milky way completely locked down. And we don't have any available resources, especially stealth ships, for your mission. It would be suicide. I know that you are capable, but that doesn't mean that I can't worry. I thought that you were 'gone' for four years. I can't live through that again. Please understand where I'm coming from_ ," Lux said.

Ahsoka sighed and lowered her head a little.

"Ok Lux. I understand," she said. Lux smiled in relief.

" _Good. Now...when will we be meeting each other again? In person_ ," Lux added with emphasis.

"Soon Luxie. I promise," Ahsoka said as she placed her hand on the screen.

Lux did the same thing with his hand on his end.

It was as if they were in the same room together.

"Goodbye Lux. I love you," Ahsoka said.

" _I love you too Ahsoka. And please be careful out there,_ " he said, as if he knew what her next coarse of action would be, his eyes full of fear and uncertainty. But he smiled at her, knowing that his girlfriend couldn't resist defying orders in an attempt to win a war.

She smiled. They didn't have to speak. Their eyes said it all.

The screen went black, and Lux's face was no longer on the screen, leaving Ahsoka alone.

She was deep in thought.

Ahsoka punched in a few buttons on her terminal to send a message to someone.

 _The Alliance may not have the resources. But I know someone who does_.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _The Azura System, The secret (and final) stronghold of the exiled Galactic Republic, Grand Army HQ_.

Deep in the far reaches of the Outer Rim, a massive space storm raged for all eternity. It was a massive yellow cloud with strong winds and deadly lightning.

Imperial patrols avoided this area as much as possible. It was a death sentence to try and explore the other side.

Of coarse, that made it the perfect place to hide, for on the other side of the storm wall was an entire star system.

Not just any star system. But it was the Azura system, the most closely guarded secret in the galaxy.

It was secret, because it served as the final stronghold for the Old Galactic Republic that once ruled the galaxy, before the dark times.

Before the Empire.

After the Clone Wars, and the Yuuzhan Vong war right after, the galaxy was in complete chaos.

The Republic struggled to maintain control over its systems, and crush the revolution that swept across the galaxy in a sea of blood.

That revolution was assisted by the long forgotten Sith Empire.

When Palpatine was discovered to be the true Lord of the Sith, he and his lap dog, a corrupted Jedi named Darth Vader, went into exile at the end of the Clone Wars.

They went to a secret Sith facility in the deep core, from which they coordinated with the exiled Sith Empire and the revolution. Together, they brought the weak and fragile Republic crashing down.

With the Sith conquest of the Core, Palpatine as the new Emperor, the support of the corrupt Republic Senate, and with Darth Vader leading the Sith military, the Jedi and the remnants of the Republic military were routed and chased into the outer rim, where it surrendered.

Palatine eventually declared the Republic to be destroyed.

He was wrong.

Many Republic forces did in fact surrender. But Supreme Chancellor Tomas Dalyell, his cabinet, the Jedi Council, the loyalist Government, and the joint chiefs, convened over their temporary capital, Denon, to discuss their next coarse of action.

They couldn't beat the Empire, but they could still fight.

So they decided to gather the remains of the Jedi order, the loyalists in the Clone Army and Navy, before going into Exile.

This led them to the Azura System, a secret star system known only to its previous owners, which was Dalyell's home planet of Sera, behind a great space storm.

Deep inside the storm, safe from the eyes of the Emperor's spies, the last of the Republic military was ever vigilant.

Warships from the Clone Wars, which had not seen action for several years, patrolled the system constantly.

An asteroid belt, that surrounded the inner planets of the system, was heavily guarded by Republic Naval cannons and star-fighter hangers that were built into some of the larger asteroids.

There was also a mine field just outside of the asteroid belt.

Azura I (First planet from the sun) had several shipyards above it, and Cloning facilities on the surface. These installations served to fill in the ranks of the Clone Army, as well as the Navy.

High above Azura II, which was the home of the Republic capital, orbital gun platforms and warships stood by, ready to protect against an invasion that would hopefully never come.

Azura IV was one of several locations that had a weather control tower on the surface. The powerful beam ripped holes into the storm to allow Republic Stealth ships to pass right through, but then deactivated in order to keep out the overly curious.

And finally, on the third planet from the sun, the home of the HQ for the Grand Army of the Republic was buzzing with activity.

It was not only where the joint chiefs of the Grand Army convened, but it was also the home of project Fulcrum.

This was the nerve center for Republic intelligence. It was also where the Alliance got all of its information, even if they didn't know it.

Republic commandoes went behind enemy lines via stealth ship to spy on the empire. That info was given to Fulcrum agents across the galaxy, which was finally passed on to the Alliance. The seeds of Rebellion were being planted by the Sith's most hated enemy, and they didn't even know about it.

The director of project Fulcrum, Ahsoka Tano, was out in the field. That left her second in command, Lt. Cmdr. Donneld Mathieson, in charge.

The veteran of the Yuuzhan Vong wars once a member of the COG Army from Sera. But when the Sith took over and the Republic went underground, he was handpicked by Ahsoka herself to co-pilot this great operation.

He sat in his private office while looking over some notes.

That's when his comm terminal, which was next to a picture of him and his pregnant wife, went off.

He looked at the terminal and saw that he had just received a private message.

It was the director of Project Fulcrum herself.

 _Mathieson. I need a favor from you._

He typed back.

 _What do you need ma'am?_

A reply was typed back to him almost immediately.

 _I need you to establish a link between our spec ops brigade and the Citadel Council. We need to find out what's going on over in the Milky Way galaxy. If we can work with Citadel Intelligence, than we'll be able to see how the conflict is unfolding._

Mathieson was surprised by what his boss was requesting. Revealing the most closely guarded secret in Republic history, even to a former ally, wasn't exactly good for his career. It could potentially be bad for the Republic too. If the Empire were to find Azura, not only would the Republic fall, but also the remnants of the Jedi order. Not to mention, the Rebel Alliance would lose everything. It would lose its funding, its intel, and its supplies, including rations, weapons, and medical supplies.

He typed back after studying Ahsoka's message, and contemplating the possible outcomes.

 _I would have to bring this up to Colonel Hoffman. But I'll see what I can do._

Colonel Hoffman was the leader of the Spec Ops brigade ever since Master Zey was killed during the Great Sith War. He was a member of the Republic joint chiefs, and regularly interacted with the Chancellor, who would be the one to authorize this endeavor.

Ahsoka typed back.

 _Thanks Don. I owe you one. I want you and a squad of Shadow Troopers to come with me on this mission. Grab a stealth ship and pick me up at the following co-ordinates when you get the authorization_.

He typed back.

 _Copy that Ma'am_ , he typed to her before disconnecting the terminal.

Mathieson got out of his seat and went to go find Hoffman

 _Things are about to get a whole lot more interesting,_ he thought to himself.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Message from the office of Tomas Dalyell, Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic in exile_.

 _From: The High Office of his excellency, the Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic._

 _To: Lt. Cmdr. Donneld Mathieson, Asst. Director of Project Fulcrum._

 _Subject: Re-establishment of Political ties to the Citadel Government._

 _Soldiers of the Republic. Given the nature of your mission, You are hereby authorized to use any means neccassary to re-establish ties to our former allies, and recon any and all activaty in the region of space between UNSC and Imperial occupied space. You are also hereby authorized to deduce whether or not a potential alliance between the Republic, Citadel, and UEG government entities is at all possible._

 _Also, I understand that revealing our existence is risky. But we must be willing to take it. I also understand that attempting to make an Alliance with a former rival (The UNSC) is unpopular amongst our populace and government. But let me be clear: Popularity does not matter. What does matter, is the survival of the Republic, the defeat of the Empire, and the liberation of the galaxy. Everything else is irrelevant._

 _Now, I wish you and your colleagues good luck._

 _May the force be with you._

 _message ends._

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _SSV Normandy. On station in the Bahak system, present day, ten minutes to Nova Bomb detonation_.

Captain Anderson went down to the _Normandy's_ main hanger.

He had Shepard and Nihlus flanking him.

They walked past several crew members as they entered the elevator that would take them down to the lower level.

When all three of them were onboard, Anderson's XO, Commander Jane Shepard, pressed the button.

The elevator slowly moved down to the main hanger.

Emphasis on slowly.

 _I can't believe it. We make faster-than-light ships, but slower than dirt elevators_ , Anderson thought, annoyed with the lack of consistency **(A/N: As a fan of the original Mass Effect trilogy, I'm no stranger to that commonly held belief either)**.

When the elevator finally made it to the main hanger, Joker came in over the comm device on Anderson's omni-tool.

" _Captain. The Republic Shuttle is requesting permission to land. Do you want me to lower the hanger doors_?" Joker asked.

"Go ahead Lieutenant," Anderson confirmed.

An energy shield materialized at the end of the hanger, just before the hanger door.

It was designed to keep the vacuum of space from sucking everything out into the cold and crushing void of space.

A black colored Nu-class shuttle, than the Council told them to expect at these co-ordinates, folded up its wings and landed in the main hanger.

As the shuttle's main ramp opened up, it depressurized.

When the ramp opened up, A squad of black armored clone troopers filed out in an orderly fashion.

They were Clone Shadow troopers. They had Onyx black armor, with red accents on their shoulder, belts, and knee guards, as well as crimson colored visors.

Jane handed seen a clone trooper in years. The crew of the Normandy were among the first people to see the Republic reveal itself, albeit covertly.

When they formed two lines on either side of the shuttle, two figures stepped out of the shuttle.

One was a human of moderate build and a military style haircut that was spiked up a little in the front.

The other was an orange humanoid with two blue and white striped tentacles growing out of her head, which were each topped off with horns, and which travelled down to her mid-waist.

It was obvious that she was female from the well-trimmed stomach, her swaying and curvaceous hips, and her large breasts, which were wider than her stomach.

She had two cylinders hanging from the belt around her hips.

The two figures walked over to Anderson and the rest of the gang.

When they were close enough, the Alliance captain gave them a salute that they returned.

"Welcome aboard the SSV Normandy. I'm Captain Anderson. And this is my XO, Commander Shepard, and our Spectre liaison, Nihlus," Anderson said as he shook the orange alien's hand.

"Thank you Captain. My name is Ahsoka Tano, and this is my XO, Lt. Cmdr. Mathieson. We work for Project Fulcrum, a Republic intel organization," Ahsoka said.

"Hm. It's been a while since we've seen the Republic way out here. Especially sense we thought that you were destroyed by the Empire," Jane said.

"And we'd like to keep it that way ma'am. The Empire cannot know that we exist," Mathieson said.

"Done. Now, everyone come with me to the briefing room," Anderson ordered.

Later, everyone was in the briefing room around a holo-table that showed the Milky way galaxy.

The map was divided up into sections of territory. The Blue territory off to the lower left was Citadel space. To the right of that, beneath the galactic core and along the Orion Arm, was a green blotch which represented the relative location of UNSC space. To the right of that was an orange blotch that represented the Swords of Sangheilios. Beneath all of that, was a massive chunk of the galaxy colored red. It was the Sith Empire and all of its allies/puppets. Crimson triangles showed Imperial fleet activity. Some of those triangles were right on the edge, or just over the edge, of UNSC space. Those triangles showed that the Empire had invaded the UNSC. The triangles on the map either disappeared or moved back away from UNSC space. That was the Empire being routed. Now they were mustering on the border between Mankind and the Empire's Batarian puppet.

"As you can see, the Empire tried to invade UNSC space over two weeks ago. They've obviously been driven back, but we don't know how, or the extent at which the UNSC suffered," Nihlus said. "We've sent several spec ops team into the area, but a lot of them were killed while in UNSC territory".

"The UNSC must really still hate us," Jane said.

"How can that be? There's no way someone could hold a grudge like that for this long," Ahsoka said.

"You'd be surprised ma'am," Donneld said. He was from the planet Sera, which was at one point embroiled in a 79 year civil war.

"However, my team was able to collect some intel. The UNSC wants to invade Batarian space and cripple the Empire's presence in the region. Scratch that. In the Galaxy," Garrus said.

"Why would they be that aggressive so soon? Something doesn't add up," Ahsoka said.

"Maybe they're just desperate," A new voice said. Everyone turned to see Liara standing there.

"What do you mean professor?" Anderson asked.

Liara looked like a new school girl that was shy and afraid to open up.

"Well, The UEG must believe that the Empire is going after forerunner technology," She said.

"Forerunners?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yes. The Forerunners were a highly advanced civilization that ruled the galaxy over 100,000 years ago. All that remains of their civilization, after they were wiped out, is the technology that they left behind, scattered across the galaxy," Liara said.

"And what does this have to do with the UNSC-Sith conflict?" Donneld asked.

"From what we can tell from studying the technology, it will only react to human touch. Any other alien life nearby will lock the system, at least for significant pieces of tech," Liara said.

"So you're saying that the Empire and UNSC can activate this old tech at will, and use it to their advantage?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yes Commander Tano. That is why the UNSC is allegedly about to go on the offensive. If the Empire gains control of any Forerunner weapons of mass destruction, such as the Halo rings, then they'll be invisible," Liara continued.

"Then we need to get this intel back to control and spread the word. We need to stop the Empire before they can gain control of the Halo array," Donneld said.

"Wait a minute. We need to see how the UNSC fairs against the Empire. They drove them back for now, but there is no way that they can push the Empire out, knowing what we know about them," Nihlus said.

Suddenly, a voice came in over the PA system.

" _Captain Anderson. I'm picking up a strange reading nearby. Patching the visual through to you now sir_ ," Joker said.

Everyone looked at the screen. It showed a black bird looking ship fading away. It disappeared just before a blue portal was ripped open into the fabric of space and time for a second. It disappeared almost as soon as it appeared.

"What was that?" Garrus asked.

"Joker. Reverse and hold the video at 35.8. And then zoom in," Anderson ordered.

As if the screen was obeying him instead of Joker, the screen reversed and froze at the time that Anderson ordered.

The image began to zoom in on the object that was in question.

Everyone looked closely.

"What's that?" Liara asked.

After a few seconds of silence, Liara got her answer.

"It's an ONI Prowler," Shepard said softly.

"Those UNSC stealth ships? What are they up to?" Ahsoka asked as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Joker. Launch a probe. Let's see what they're up too," Anderson ordered.

" _Aye Aye_ ," Joker sounded off.

The Normandy's probe scouted out the area. They kept their distance from the Imperial fleet that was gathering above Aratoht for another strike on the UNSC's frontier worlds. After a few more minutes of combing the spot where the Prowler once occupied, the probe towards Aratoht.

Suddenly, a blinding light flashed on the surface.

At first it didn't seem important. But then cracks began to form in the surface, before the planet cracked open.

The surface boiled and exploded.

No one had ever seen anything like.

One half of the planet just exploded.

Chunks flew in every direction. The shockwave from the blast flattened everything on the other half of the planet. The part that didn't explode.

The dozens of Imperial and hundreds of Batarian warships in orbit around what was once Aratoht, melted and exploded from the sheer force of the raw destructive force.

Then came the planet's moon. The shockwave split the moon apart, before it shattered like a glass ball being smashed by a sledgehammer.

Normandy's probe was still feeding footage to the briefing room.

Everyone was in pure shock at what they saw. What they were witnessing was the destructive capability of Mankind being unleashed on an enemy for the first time since the last year of the Covenant War.

"Keelai!" Tali exclaimed softly in disbelief.

But it didn't stop at the moon.

The footage from the probe went to static.

Jane was the first to snap out of it.

"Joker! Get us the Hell out of here. On the double mister!" Jane shouted into her omni-tool.

"Copy that ma'am. I'm booking it," Joker said.

The _Normandy_ spun around in a 180 degree turn to escape the shockwave that had decimated an Imperial fortress world and its moon.

As the _Normandy_ sped away into a position that was relatively safe from destruction of Aratoht, Joker came in over the radio.

"Captain. We're in the clear," Joker said.

"Take us to the border Joker!" Anderson ordered.

The assembled crew replayed the images over and over again. The destruction of the planet and then the rewinding to just before it blew up.

"What in Hell's name was that?" Mathieson asked.

"I don't know. But it wiped out an entire planet, and the fleet protecting it. Impressive," Garrus complimented.

"I think its disturbing," Tali said.

"But who was it? Was it the UNSC?" Ahsoka asked.

"No. There's no way it was the UNSC!" Nihlus stated.

"Something tell's me that it was them," Anderson said. "Rumor has it that we were building bombs during the Covenant War that could take out entire planets. This must be the opening salvo of a massive invasion".

"What makes you say that captain?" Kaiden asked.

As if on queue, Joker's voice came in over the comm.

" _Captain. Slip-space ruptures detected!_ "

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Batarian Space, Imperial listening post, Bahak system, UNSC-Batarian border, one minute after the destruction of Aratoht._

On the edge of the Bahak system, right on the Terran-Batarian border, a lone Imperial early warning station stood.

They'd just received word that Aratoht was destroyed.

"What do you mean gone? How does a planet just disappear like that?!" An Imperial officer demanded.

"I don't know sir. I-It just...It just, disappeared. I can't explain it," a young ensign said. "And we've lost all contact from the fleet".

"Sir! We're detecting multiple anomalies near the border. They're coming from Terran space!" Another crewman said.

The officer's anger and confusion immediately turned to fear as he looked out the viewport at about 40 portals being ripped open into the fabric of space and time.

42 portals appeared. 42 objects came out.

They were UNSC warships.

The flagship UNSC Infinity, 6 battlecruisers, 10 destroyers, and 25 frigates were staring down at him.

A dozen rockets fired out of the Infinity.

And moments later, the station exploded.

The UNSC counterattack had begun.

Mankind's wrath was unleashed.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **There's the beginning of Act 2 for you folks. Hope you enjoy**

 **This is Grubkiller, signing out for now.**


	9. Chapter 9-Feet First Into Hell!

**Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.**

 **Hey folks. Sorry if it seems like i'm a little slow at updating. I've been busy with life and two other stories.**

 **Also, I would** **like to address a couple of the comments in the review section.**

 **First off: someone asked me "since when was Ahsoka busty?" My answer: when** **fan fiction got started.**

 **Secondly: Someone claimed that I wasn't a true halo fan and didn't know much about halo because I didn't know a certain piece of info from Halo 2. My response:"Look Mac, I may not know everything, but I promise you that I am a (diehard) Halo fan. I've played all the games, except Spartan strike, and beat most of them on Legendary (Halo 2 happens to be the first halo game I ever played and my favorite next to Halo 3 sense you brought it up). I recently beat Halo 3 xbox one comp-back on Legendary for the game's ten year anniversary (those Jackal snipers are a bitch). I've read a bunch of the novels (Fall of Reach was the best), a bunch of the graphic novels (Uprising's the best, and every other one was a close second, except Tales from slipspace), I love the old art style the best (#Bring back Chief's Halo 2/3 armor, #Make Cortana Hot again), I'm still pissed at Brian Reed for killing Spartan Black Team, and speaking of Brian Reed, I watched his God-Awful Fall of Reach movie adaptation, I'm still pissed about Halo 5 guardians (the marketing was slimy and the fight scene between Chief and Locke was terrible. Not to mention only playing as chief for 3 missions while playing as agent boring for the other 12), and I can't stand the way he talked about Lord Hood ("Why do we have to call him Lord Hood? Can't we just call him Terrance Hood" -Brian Reed. "Bitch, 'cuz he's Lord Hood!"-Me). 'Mike drop'. So I consider myself a Halo fan. I appreciate your comment in the review section. I hope I've cleared that up for you. Once again, I assure you that I am a Halo fan.**

 **Last item of discussion: I re-edited the previous chapter. It's mostly the same, but I changed a few minor details about some of the characters and their origins.**

 **Anyway, here's part 2 of act 2.**

 **Hope you enjoy.**

 **The UNSC invades Batarian space.**

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Khar'shan. Batarian Home world. September 11th 2561, three days after invasion starts. UNSC Infinity, ODST drop pod bay, aka, "Hell's waiting room"_.

Major John Shepard was rustling through his locker.

He was strapping on his ODST armor.

When he grabbed the helmet, he saw several pictures of his family.

There was one of his parents and another with his siblings, including his treasonous twin sister, Jane Shepard.

Another one had his girlfriend, Miranda Lawson, an ONI agent that he met on a mission deep in Republic space during the Clone Wars. Their mission: covertly support their ally, the CIS, in putting down an insurrection on Onderon. They failed, but one of his squamates did take out their leader, Steela Gerrera, as a defiant middle finger.

He looked at the picture and smiled. She was a beautiful woman who looked like a swimsuit model that could only come out of a computer.

They were on vacation while they were both on leave. They usually spent weeks, sometimes months, apart. But getting back together was always, always, worth the wait.

The 30 year old colonial from the planet Mindoir placed the picture in his helmet for good luck.

Shepard turned around to see his squad-mates gathering their gear behind them. "You ready ladies?"

Lance Corporal Isaac Gates, aka Felix, was was the squad's CQC expert. He was sharpening his knifes, which both had brass knuckles as hilt guards. "You know it boss. I'm ready to slice open a new asshole for those 4-eyed freaks. And then Locus can eat them".

"Mmmmm, very funny," Corporal Samuel Ortez, aka Locus, grumbled. The giant trooper of hispanic dissent was the heavy weapons expert. He was combing through the weapons rack for his preferred brass spewing beauties. The man of few words had an 'X' shaped scar on his face. It was from a close encounter with a dual-sword yielding elite from the Covenant War. He brandished a SAW and a Railgun. "Just make sure you focus on the job at hand instead of your bad jokes".

Locus and Felix fought together in the Covenant War. They also did mercenary work with the forth member of the team, Staff-Sergeant Mason Wu, aka Siris. He was the squad's expert marksmen and tech expert. He had a spotter drone that he named after his wife, Megan.

"Ready for action boss. I can't wait to see how my drone handles in the field. I've made some special improvements," Siris said whilst tinkering with the drone.

"Glad to hear it. How's the wife and kids," Shepard asked.

"Right as rain Major," Siris said, smiling.

Shepard smiled and nodded.

Buck Sergeant Ashley Williams, AKA 'Kicker', who had her Designated Marksman Rifle laying next to her, was writing letters to her sisters, and to her boyfriend James Vega, who was also a Marine Officer. When she was done writing her letters, she placed them in a poetry book as bookmarks. Shepard noticed the front cover said Tennyson.

"What poem are you on sergeant?" Shepard asked.

She snapped to.

"Ulysses sir," she said.

"Love that one. As you were," he said.

"Yes sir," she said

The team's corpsman, Petty Officer Emily Grey, aka 'Doc', was getting her medical equipment ready. She was silently humming opera music to herself. She was the youngest of the squad. She was smart, pretty, and a little insane. She didn't see action in the Covenant war, but her colony, Chorus, suffered the worst civil war in colonial history. She and her family sided with the UEG loyalist government against the Insurrectionists, who were backed by the Citadel. When she was old enough, she became a corpsman for UNSC forces after the Covenant War. She saw a lot of...unpleasant things.

Their company commander, and demolitions expert of the team, Lieutenant Colby, aka Cobra, was holding his rosary beads and muttering a silent prayer to himself. He was the most experienced, being a veteran of the Covenant War. He was from the colony world Vekta. His father was a Hell-jumper as well. He was aboard the _Spirit of Fire_ when it went missing in action, literally one day before Colby was born. He wouldn't meet his father until 2559, when the _Spirit_ was rediscovered. After the war, when the Systems Alliance rebelled against the UNSC in '53, Vekta fell under their influence, which was enforced by the Turians. The ethnic American colony refused to be apart of the Systems Alliance, so they rebelled. They put up so much resistance that the original Citadel occupation actually fled the planet before the UNSC arrived with reinforcements. The small, yet heavily armed, agrarian colony, with one major industrial city and 21.7 million in population, immediately gained a reputation.

The mottos, _'Don't Tread On Me!_ ' and _In God We Trust!_ , took on a whole new meaning.

He got the nickname, Cobra, because snakes never strike unless provoked, they always hold their ground, never give up, and they strike with venom, which Colby did towards all enemies of his beloved homeland.

"Hey Cobra. There enough room on those rosary beads for us?" Shepard asked.

"Always. I don't know about Felix though," Cobra said.

"Hey," Felix said.

Everyone chuckled.

An alarm went off.

Then Captain Lasky's voice came in.

 _"All hands, this is the Captain speaking. We are now in geosync orbit above Khar'shan's capital. Prepare for orbital insertion"_.

"That's us. Move it Hell-jempers".

The launch bay, aka Hell's waiting room, was packed with the entire battalion.

Company commanders were gathering their platoons for orbital insertion.

"Atten-Hut!" someone shouted. "Officer on deck!"

Hundreds of ODSTs snapped to attention when they saw Shepard enter the room.

"At ease!" Shepard.

Everyone relaxed.

"Everyone, I'm not going to lie to you. This is going to be a tough mission. This has to be the most ambitious undertaking in recent memory. We are at war with an extra-galactic Empire and its local allies. And we are invading the home-world of one of those allies. This'll be tough. But we are Hell-jumpers. For more than 400 years, we've been kicking ass and taking names before those spartans reared their armored faces on the battlefield. Speaking of which, while the armored wonders are busy getting the easy job, sipping wine and eating caviar, Lasky has decided to call in the real warriors of this galaxy to give the Batarians a good kick in the pants," Shepard said.

The Helljumpers all agreed enthusiastically.

"And who are we to disappoint?" Shepard asked his troopers.

"URRAH!" They all exclaimed.

"Now report to your companies and say a prayer before go in five minutes. Oh! And how do we go Helljumpers?" Shepard asked.

"WE GO FEET FIRST SIR!" The entire Battalion shouted in unison.

Shepard smiled. "Now report in with your company commanders".

Everyone scrambled to their drop spots where their commanders were.

Shepard walked over to to see Cobra, Felix, Locus, Siris, Kicker, and Doc gather over by Viper Company, led by Lieutenant Jacob 'Cobra' Colby.

"All right ladies! Fall in. Major Shepard has graced us with his presence. He is going to be leading us into battle like a real helljumper is supposed to, unlike our good friend Commander Palmer upstairs," Cobra said.

All of Viper Company booed. Spartan Sarah Palmer was in charge of the Spartan compliment on board. She spent most of her time in CIC giving orders over the comm system. She did go into battle once in a while and that was respected, but for a former Helljumper, she sure liked to lead from behind a lot, which the entire battalion didn't appreciate. It was customary for an ODST officer to lead the charge. Anything less was taboo and looked down upon.

"All right knock it off. Now, platoon leaders fall in. It's time for a prayer. Unless your an atheist, in which case, what the fuck are you doing in my company?" Cobra asked.

Everyone laughed as their platoon leaders, including Siris of 1st platoon, huddled around Cobra and placed their hands on his shoulders for the prayer. Everyone else took a knee and bowed their heads.

He got out his lucky Military Bible with camo print that his family gave him for his birthday before he looked over at Shepard.

"Care to join us Major?" Cobra asked. Shepard smiled.

"Hey. No atheist in a foxhole. Am I right?" Shepard said as he placed his hand on Siris's shoulder.

"Dear Heavenly Father. We thank you for this chance to stand up for our blessed homeland in these troubled times and the chance to fight alongside each other as brothers and sisters in arms. We humbly beseech you O Lord for your devine protection and guidance. As we go into battle to confront Evil in your name, Through Jesus Christ we ask that you watch over us and deliver us to victory. Thy Will Be done, Almighty God. Amen".

"Amen," Everyone repeated.

"Oh, one more thing Father: We ask that you ignore our enemy's heathen prayers and send them straight to Hell where they belong. Oorah," Cobra finished.

"OORAH!" everyone shouted before they started to chuckle a little.

"That was beautiful sir," Kicker said before she put her helmet on.

"Thank you sergeant. Now everyone to your pods!"

All across the launch bay, troopers got into their pods.

Each pod rotated as a hatch opened up beneath each of them, revealing the space beneath the ship.

They could see Khar'shan.

"We're dropping into Hell Marines. Time to grow a pair!" Shepard said before a beeping sound went off in his pod. When it beeped one last time, hundreds of pods shot out from the bottom of the Infinity.

A couple dozen pods were also carrying warthogs and cyclops mechs to the surface, along with four scorpion tanks for support.

Like hundreds of small comets, they shot down to the planet below.

They passed through the debris that was left behind from the battle in orbit.

UNSC and Imperial/Batarian fleets engaged one another all over the system.

This was the last major Batarian stronghold. Everything else was either conquered or flattened.

The only reason the system lasted this long was because of the extensive Imperial presence in the region. They weren't going to let their puppet closest to UNSC space fall without a fight.

Shepard accelerated his pod so that it looked like he was leading the charge. The company commanders did the same, followed by the squad leaders.

Hundreds of ODSTs were now screaming towards Hell beneath them. Only it was the Devil who was going to shake in fear.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Imperial Airbase, seven miles outside Khar'Shan's capital_.

When ODST HEV (human entry viechle) pods drop to the surface and through the atmosphere, it caused the pods to heat up exponentially due to re-entry.

This gave the ODSTs their signature nickname: "Helljumpers", and their signature motto: "Feet First Into Hell".

As the Battalion descended to the planet below, Shepard could see their target getting bigger and bigger.

It looked just like the pictures that Aerial Recon took a few days ago when the invasion started.

Their target was an Airbase. This was where the Empire's air support was coming from. It was protecting a major supply route for the Imperial/Batarian forces.

If they secured this base, then it would serve as a launching point to take the capital. But most importantly, this was the location of the current regime leader, Admiral Balak of the Batarian Navy. He was the new puppet dictator being propped up by the Empire.

Tie Fighter hangers, munitions depots, and AA emplacements dotted the base. Their was a command center in the center of the base but closer to the capital.

"Major, we're 14 kilometers from surface," said Shepard's AI companion, EDI. She was dumb AI that gave Shepard tactical information from the battlefield. "Be advised: Enemy forces are scrambling to engage. I think they know we're here".

"Yeah thanks EDI. All right Troopers. Stand by to pop your chutes and get ready to come out swinging. We've got a serious fight on our hands," Shepard said.

Suddenly, heavy flak started to appear around them, as red plasma bolts flew up and exploded in the air around the descending pods.

A few of the pods exploded. But their hundreds more to take their place.

"Can't we take out those guns?" Felix complained, justifiably.

"Unless your complaining can take out those guns, then I suggest you stop," Locus said.

Moments later, an arc-flight of Longswords flew past the air field and carpet bombed the area.

The guns fell silent, clearing the way for the ODST battalion.

"Ha. What do I always tell you Locus? My complaining is this team's charm," Felix said with pride.

"It'll be my foot's one way ticket up your ass if you don't shut up!" Locus threatened.

"I will turn these pods around if you kids don't behave," Kicker said.

"Everyone maintain radio discipline!" Siris ordered.

 _Thank you Siris_ , Shepard thought to himself.

"Commander. We're two kilometers from the surface and closing fast. I recommend that you order the battalion to deploy their chutes," EDI said.

"Roger that EDI. Everyone deploy your chutes," Shepard ordered.

All around him, HEV pods were deploying parachutes to slow their descent. The pods crying viechles deployed multiple chutes.

Shepard was the last to deploy his.

His pod was the first to hit the surface. But not before smashing through a parked Tie fighter and its pilot.

The rest of the battalion hit the dirt around him.

Hatches were blown off of every pod, their human cargo entering the fight swinging.

Shepard grabbed his MA5D Assault Rifle off of his back to start peppering Imperial troopers with 7.62 MM rounds.

The heavy rifle rounds tore through the weak points on the Stormtrooper armor, ripping apart several troopers with short controlled bursts.

One stormtrooper tried to get the jump on him.

But before he could, Felix got the jump on the stormie. He tackled him to the ground and took out his combat knife.

He plunged the stainless steel blade into the trooper's neck and pulled it out. Blood spurted out of the Imperial trooper's neck as he withdrew the knife, which was now painted crimson.

"Thanks Felix," Shepard said.

"No problem sir. I keep telling you guys you need me," Felix said.

"You can pat yourself on the back later," Locus shouted over the gunfire as he took cover near an overturned Imperial speeder bike.

He put his SAW on a bipod and deployed it to fire from a fixed position. The automatic weapon chattered away, as Locus used to cut down anything in his sight that was wearing white armor.

Siris and Kicker took cover alongside them and started picking off targets from a distance.

Cobra pushed up with the rest of the platoon.

He butted a stormie in the chest with the butt of his M90 Shotgun. He then rebound and clocked him in the faceplate, knocking him to the ground.

When the armored trooper was on the ground, Cobra walked up and filled his face with buckshot.

He then shouldered the shotgun and unveiled a M2 frag grenade and threw it at a cluster of stormtroopers.

The explosion killed the troopers that were closest to the explosion, but the troopers farther away were protected with their armor.

But they were distracted. Cobra charged them and went to work, blasting away at them with his lead spewing death dealer.

Doc Grey was hanging back, giving medical treatment to the wounded. But when she was done, she rejoined the rest of the squad.

Soon, Shepard and his team from Viper Company were together.

Over a dozen UNSC Warthogs and Cyclops heavy mechs had pushed up with the rest of the Helljumpers. The Cyclops mechs peppered the enemy armor with their 30mm cannons, while the warthogs sprayed them with 50 cal. ammunition.

"Major, the base is 35.8% under our control. The Command Center is still under their control. If we take it, then the Empire will be unable to co-ordinate their defense," EDI said.

"Copy that. Alright, listen up. We need to take that building over there. If we do, then the base is ours," Shepard said. "Master Sergeant Stacker. This is Shepard. I want you to take your platoon and push through their lines with the armor. How copy, over?"

" _I read ya loud and clear Major. We'll be through 'em like shit through a goose in no time,_ " Stacker said.

"Copy all, I'll be with you in a second. Cobra. I want you and Viper to be ready to take point with the rest of the Battalion when we've smashed through their armor," Shepard said.

Cobra nodded.

"Aye Sir," he said.

Shepard sprinted over to MSgt. Stacker's team amidst the storm of enemy fire raining down on his men.

"Glad you could join sir," Stacker said.

"Likewise," the Major said to the Covenant War veteran. "You and your men ready?"

Stacker cracked a smile and turned to his men. The team included, Sergeant Jones, Cpl. Butkus, Lcpl. Walpole, and Lcpl. Dubbo. **(All from Halo 2)**.

"2nd Platoon on me. We're gonna escort the armor to that building," Stacker said, pointing in the direction of their target.

Each trooper looked in the direction of the target building, and the wall of Imperial hover tanks walker in the way.

"Ah Bloody 'ell. Let's do it lads," exclaimed Chips Dubbo.

The Helljumpers mounted the armor. They sat on the four slots on the hull as passengers, to provide additional fire support.

Shepard mounted the tank just as the machine gunner was shot in the head by a stray laser bolt.

"Ah shit!" He exclaimed before he jumped up to pull the trooper out of the turret.

After laying the trooper down, he jumped into the empty gunner position.

"Lieutenant. Gather up the rest of Bravo Company and push forward with the rest of the viechles," Shepard ordered.

The ODST officer nodded before running to gather his NCOs.

Shepard banged on the hull.

The driver took it as an order to advance.

The engines of all four tanks roared to life, their heavy caterpillar tracks rolling forward.

As the armor advanced, their Helljumper passengers picked off any Imperial trooper that got in their way.

Shepard's 50 cal. came to life and chattered away. It's heavy armor piercing rounds blowing stormtroopers apart in a gruesome display with little effort.

They were coming up on the first line of Imperial armor, which had the rest of the Battalion pinned down.

Mortar and rocket fire from the ODSTs kept the Empire at bay.

Rushing to their aid, the Scorpions fired their 90mm cannons at the Imperial armor.

The heavy armor piercing tungsten rounds pierced right through the enemy armor.

As the tanks went up in flames, stormtroopers began to flee in the opposite direction towards the 2nd line.

"First line clear. Advance!" Stacker ordered.

Another wave of imperial armor held the 2nd line, but they were reinforced with AT-STs.

They turned their guns on the charging tanks. Heavy cannon blasts destroyed one of the scorpion tanks.

Flames shot out of the hatches and enveloped Stacker's men who were riding on the tank's hull.

A second scorpion was hit in the left tread and it turned hard to the right.

The remaining two tanks continued the charge.

But while the Empire was focused on the charging tanks, they didn't see the rest of the battalion's viechles advancing on their flanks.

The warthogs charged and peppered the enemy positions with 50 cal. rounds, while the cyclops mechs charged on their mechanical limbs, their 30mm cannons blasting away at the Imperial walkers.

The Imperial turned to face the attacking viechles.

Imperial Jet troopers swooped in from above. They attacked the warthogs.

"Simmons! Take out those fliers," A Helljumper with a shotgun in the passenger seat ordered.

"On it Sarge!" Another ODST in the gunner position replied before he sighted up on the enemy fliers. Simmons blasted away with his his machine gun like the other warthogs to shoot down most of the flying super commandoes. They crashed into the ground before their jetpacks exploded and vaporized their gory remains.

The remaining commandoes fired a volley of missiles. Two warthogs were wiped out. Their burning wreckages blocked the path of the other warthogs, which all stopped.

Enemy tanks continued to hold their ground.

They blasted away at several charging mechs and managed to destroy a couple of them. But they were running to fast.

When they were close enough, the carnage began.

One cyclops ran up to an AT-ST and clobbered it with it metal arms. The walker's face caved in and fell backwards. When it hit the ground, its head exploded.

Another cyclops grabbed the barrel of a tank's cannon and ripped it out of its socket.

The inner workings of the tank were exposed.

Crewmen were inside with terrified looks on their faces.

They could see the pilot inside the cyclops with a wicked smile on her face.

She pointed the cannon inside of the tank.

A jet of flame and napalm was shot inside the tank.

Flames shot out of every opening in the viechle, the screams of the dying crew members being cooked alive.

Shepard's two remaining tanks blasted away at the Imperial tanks that still held their ground.

Every last one of them went up in a blaze.

Any stormtrooper that was still alive ran for their lives.

"Second line clear, come on, ya need an invitation? Push forward and kick some ass!" Stacker ordered.

"Viper Company. On me. We're gonna take over that building. Balak should be inside," Shepard said.

"You heard the Major. First Platoon on me. The rest of you secure the perimeter," Cobra ordered.

As the rest of the Battalion moved to secure the base, and Viper Company secured the perimeter, Shepard and Viper 1-1 moved inside to clear out the command center.

Shepard and 1st platoon stacked up on the door.

"Siris, Kicker. Hang back and provide sniper support," Shepard ordered into his comm-device as he nodded to Cobra, who went to the door to set an explosive on the door.

" _You got it Major,_ " Siris said.

The door exploded behind Shepard and the squad rushed in.

The sounds of gun shots bounced off the walls and echoed out the door.

Locus used a SAW to mow down several Imperial troopers. One tried to get close to him with a knife.

Too close.

Locus grabbed the trooper and lifted him up off his feet. He crushed the struggling trooper's windpipe and proceeded to use him as a meat shield.

Felix advanced with his suppressed M7 SMG and fired short controlled bursts into any trooper that got in his way.

When his gun clicked he went to reload it. When a charging stormtrooper tried to flay him with a laser bayonet. Acting quickly, Felix pulled a dagger from his belt and threw it at the trooper.

It spun like a propeller and caught the trooper right in his eye. The glass stopped its momentum, but not the damage it caused.

It was stuck in his eye.

He screamed.

This gave felix a chance to side step the trooper and swing his arms together like a baseball bat and and knock him in his chest and onto his back.

The trooper struggled to get up, but Felix raised his foot, and curb stomped the trooper in the eye, driving the small dagger deeper into his head.

He stopped struggling after that.

Cobra, who had run out of 8 gauge shells long ago, used an older MA5B Assault Rifle to cut down any one who got in his way.

When he was about to pass an open door, he tossed a couple grenades inside the door.

Then came the screaming.

"Stang! Grenades!" someone, who was obviously waiting to ambush someone, shouted.

Then came the explosions.

One trooper flew through the doorway from the explosion.

He was still alive.

Cobra aimed his rifle at the trooper's back and squeezed the trigger, sending a burst of 7.62mm rounds into his neck.

Shepard moved in and started using his clearing the building with his men.

They all went upstairs and stacked up on the door to the command center.

" _Major. There appears to be 20 hostiles on the other side of this door. We are severely outnumbered,_ " EDI said.

"Well let's change that," Shepard said before he reached for his comm device.

"Siris. This is Shepard. Do you have a positive ID on Admiral Balak?" He asked.

" _No sir. It looks like he's long gone. Be advised: You have a bunch of jokers facing the door. Do you want me and Kicker to thin 'em out for you_?"

"Wait. Kill half of the stormtroopers inside, and spare any officers you two see. I have a few questions for them," Shepard asked.

" _Wilco, stand by,_ " Siris said.

A few moments later they heard the sounds of glass windows shattering on the other side.

" _Sniper, take cov-_ ," one trooper started to say.

" _Where's it coming from? A_ nother said.

" _What the hell is that thing?_ " someone else screamed, obviously talking about Siris' new drone.

Bloodcurdling screams filled the room on the other side of the door, and the pings of sniper rounds hitting the bulkhead.

The squad waited patiently.

Felix whistled jeopardy to himself.

Doc Grey checked her nails in a typical feminine fashion.

And the others just tapped their feet against the deck, or tapped their fingers on their weapons.

Then no sounds came from the other side of the door.

Shepard's radio buzzed and he answered it.

" _Sir everyone in the room is either dead or shitting themselves. You are cleared to proceed,_ " Siris said.

"Roger that. Preparing to breach. Alright watch your fire. If they move to suddenly, kill them. But otherwise don't harm them. Felix and Locus are on point. Cobra, time for your special knock," Shepard said.

Cobra smiled behind his helmet and placed a det-pack on the door. He got clear as Locus and Felix stacked up on the door.

The door exploded and The two Helljumpers rushed into the room.

"Hands Up And Don't Move!" Locus shouted.

Everyone froze and placed their hands over their heads.

But one officer shot to his feet. "Please do-".

Locus blasted him with his SAW before he could finish, splattering blood on some of the terrified souls behind him.

"Were you idiots even listening? He said 'don't move'. God, how did you ever become soldiers?" Felix asked.

"Alright. Line 'em up against the wall," Shepard ordered. He faced Siris' drone and gave it a thumbs up. The response was a nod from the drone, and a glint from Siris's scope far away.

He looked at the zip-tied prisoners and sat down on a holo-table in the middle of the room.

Cobra, Doc, Felix, and Locus all had them covered.

"Alright. Here's the situation: Our target, Admiral Balak, is no longer here. But he was here. Which means that you know where he is. Now, I will be the nicest guy in the world if you co-operate, or I will show you what happens when you piss off a Helljumper. either way is fine with me," Shepard said.

One imperial officer stood on his knees with defiance in his heart.

"We'll never tell you anything. We'll die first for our Emperor before we will ever talk to you," he said.

Shepard leaned his head back and stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"Fine by me. Corpsman. These fine gentlemen wish to die for their Emperor. Oblige them," Shepard said to the slightly insane medical professional.

Grey crossed one leg over the other, raised her hands with the palms facing up, and let out triumphant exclamation. "Yay! Oh, I positively love this job".

She took her helmet off and took her field pack off and fished through it for her medical equipment.

The moderately insane corpsmen hummed classic music to herself. Ode to Joy.

The imperial prisoners looked at her with pure terror in their eyes as she looked through her tool kit.

"Let's see uh, scalpel? No, no, no. Bone saw? No not that either. Come on Emily. Ah ha. Autopsy saw!" She shouted with jubilation.

She powered it on for a few seconds, spinning the small circular blade.

Grey stood in front of the prisoners.

"Now..." She started as she lightly tapped her index finger against the circular blade. "...Who's my first victim. Hmmmm. How about you handsome?"

One officer was pale. Locus picked him up and dragged the screaming officer out the door.

As Grey walked towards the exit, her butt cheeks moving up and down with each step, she started singing opera.

Locus came back in as Grey stepped out.

For a few minutes, the sounds of screaming, the whining of a saw, and Grey's singing filled the room.

The color disappeared from every prisoner's face. They were on the verge of tears. One trooper was so overwhelmed with fear that he actually passed out.

"Alright. We'll talk. We'll talk. Just please stop for heaven's sake," one prisoner, an officer, begged.

"Music to my ears. Grey!" Shepard shouted.

Grey came back in with some blood on her hands and armor. She was also carrying the passed out prisoner with her, who had cuts across his body.

"That was fun. Don't worry, he'll be okay," she said.

Shepard looked at the prisoner who promised to speak.

"Now, Where. Is. Balak?" Shepard asked slowly.

"He, He's in the capital. The main government building. He also has safe houses that we don't know about mostly. We can give the locations of the ones that we do know about," the trooper said.

Shepard walked up to the trooper and kneeled in front of him.

The trooper recoiled in fear.

But he didn't expect Shepard to place a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you," he said.

"Major. We have a new problem," EDI said.

"What is it EDI?" Shepard asked.

Everyone payed closer attention.

" _Sir, the Empire has arrived. They want their base back,_ " she said.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Imperial airbase, under UNSC control_.

The Empire didn't waste any time trying to reclaim their base.

It was the largest ground base they had in the system.

Without it, the Empire's supply lines would be cut. The Batarian's air support would be seriously reduced, and the Empire's presence in the region would falter as well, if not collapse.

They also didn't want the UNSC to have a base with which to attack the Batarian capital, which was a hop, skip, and a jump away.

Imperial corvettes and fighter squadrons were scrambled reclaim it.

An entire armored division was pulled off of the front lines to kick the UNSC out.

All around, green laser blasts slammed into the wall, sending debris, dust, and the occasional limb flying through the air.

Tie fighters and bombers flew by, their engines roaring, to drop their payload on the Hell-jumper battalion below.

ODSTs manned the perimeter.

Mortar-men dropped rounds down the tube in order to propel it down range.

Some rounds fell short of the endless wave of Stormtroopers, tanks, and walkers.

But some rounds dropped right on top of their intended targets.

Stormtroopers were blown apart in a red mist, white viechles belched metal and smoke from multiple hits.

The Cyclops took cover and held their ground, firing their powerful anti-viechle cannons at the approaching armor.

The two fully functional scorpion tanks were dug into a reverse slope position. Their bodies were buried, but not their weaponry.

Warthogs, with passengers carrying rocket launchers, conducted hit and run attacks on the forward ranks of the Imperial army.

EDI even managed to take over and re-direct the airfield defenses and turn them on the Imperil drop-ships that landed to close.

Three helljumpers jumped into a warthog. PFC Grif jumped into the driver position, Corporal Simmons jumped on the gunner position, while their shotgun wielding sergeant took the passenger seat.

Some of their other teammates, Lcpl 'Donut', Lcpl Lopez, and a third trooper from a different platoon took a second 'hog.

"Alright, step on it numb-nuts," Sarge ordered Grif.

As he turned the engine on, the radio came on and started playing ' _Jaime Y Los Chamacos Los Dos Laredos Acordeones de Oro_ '. (RvB fans understand this).

"Do we have to listen to this crap?" Grif asked.

"Yes. It's our signature battle song. It's our way of saying, 'look out evil doers, here comes Crimson platoon'." Donut said.

"Really? I thought it said, 'Evil beware, We have spicy Burritos'," Grif said.

" _Will you two shut up? We have a job to do. We can discuss it when we get back to the Infinity_," Lopez ordered.

"Lopez's right. We have ass to kick," Sarge said. "Punch it Grif".

The two warthogs ripped through the dirt to join up with the other warthogs.

They drove across the path of the Imperial army.

Simmons and the other warthog gunners peppered the enemy with 50 calibre ammunition.

Passenger seat occupants, like Sarge, leveled their SPNKr rocket launchers at the Imperial armor.

Stormtroopers were cut apart while more tanks burst into flames.

The warthog drivers gunned their engines to return to base quickly.

When they were halfway back, a plasma round struck the ground beneath Donut and Lopez's viechle.

"JUNE BAG!" Sarge exclaimed.

It lifted into the air and flipped over.

The jeep landed upside down.

"Stop the jeep Grif and come with me," He said. The jeep stopped, allowing Sarge and Grif to look for survivors. "Simmons. You keep us covered".

Simmons nodded and started blasting away at the advancing Imperial army.

Rockets and plasma continued to fly past and pound the airbase.

"I found Donut. But that other fella didn't make it," Sarge slapped Donut awake. He stirred awake, barely. "It's okay trooper, we'll get you out of here".

Grif rounded the corner and saw Lopez's helmet.

"Holy Shit! I found Lopez's head," Grif shouted.

"I'm fine Grif," Lopez's head said.

Grif jumped back and yelped.

"Holy Fuck. You can still talk without a body?" Grif asked.

"I'm buried you idiot. Help dig me out before I dig myself out and strangle you," Lopez threatened.

"Oh right," Grif said as he started digging Lopez out.

"' _How do can you talk without a body_?' Jesus Grif, how is that even physically possible?" Lopez lectured.

Suddenly, a grenade latched onto the remaining jeep.

"Oh Fuck!" Simmons shouted as he dove off of the gunner position and ran away from the jeep, which exploded.

"Shit, now what?" Grif asked.

"We run numb-nuts. The Good Lord gave you legs, so ya might as well use 'em," Sarge said. "Now help me carry Donut to the perimeter".

Sarge and Grif carried Donut with their shoulders, While Simmons and Lopez provided covering fire.

Lopez got hit in both legs by plasma bolts.

"Gawh, merde!" Lopez exclaimed.

Simmons caught him before he hit the floor.

"I got ya Lopez!" Simmons said as he threw Lopez over his shoulders and ran back to base.

Lopez, with a lot of fight left in him, reached for his sidearm and started putting rounds down range while Simmons carried him back.

The team eventually made it back to the base, which had suffered more damage from the Empire than the UNSC ironically.

Concrete and steel bunkers were completely ripped open and the control towers were knocked down at the beginning of the siege to give snipers fewer and fewer places to shoot from.

Hell jumpers continued to hold the perimeter with what ammo they had.

The screams of wounded Helljumpers echoed through the hastily dug trenches and could be heard over the sound of gunfire and explosions.

"Gawh! Corpsmen! We need a corpsmen ASAP!" Someone shouted.

Petty Officer 'Doc' Grey rushed through the battlefield and dodged plasma rounds, like the other corpsmen, to get to where she needed to be.

"I'm a corpsmen. Calm down trooper, What's wrong?!" She asked.

"They hit me. Those bastards hit me. They got me right in the lap". the wounded trooper shouted.

"Alright. Wait, sorry. What was that?" Grey asked, completely caught off guard.

"My lap. I was shot in the lap!" the wounded trooper repeated.

"Can you be more specific? Were you hit in the upper thigh or something?" Doc Grey asked.

"Didn't you here him? He said his lap," the other trooper said.

"Oh God, my lap!" the wounded trooper bellowed.

"I'm sorry, it's just that that's not proper..." Grey started to say.

"Well excuse my friend here for not being certified medical genius," the other trooper said offended.

"Come on lady! I'm bleeding out here! Cut me some slack," the wounded trooper begged.

"Alright Alright! Are you hit anywhere else?" Grey asked.

"My tummy," the wounded trooper said.

"They got him right in the tummy," the other trooper said, choking up a little.

Grey sighed.

"This is gonna be a long day".

Elsewhere, other ODSTs were keeping the Empire at bay.

Msgt. Stacker paced up and down the line that his men protected, shouting orders.

"Pour it on. Do not let up. I want hot barrels people, so keep it up!" Stacker ordered, as his men continued to blast away at the enemy.

"This one's to Palpatine with warm regards!" Chips Dubbo shouted as he primed a frag grenade and threw it over the trench, killing several stormies when it went off.

Sarge (passenger), Simmons (gunner), and Grif (driver), grabbed an extra warthog and headed straight for the front while Donut and Lopez stayed at the aid station.

They drove near the front and started taking potshots at the approaching Imperials.

 **"** Simmons! Status report!" Sarge asked the hog gunner.

"We're completely surrounded, _severely_ unprepared and reinforcements aren't coming _any time soon!"_ Simmons explained as he fed a fresh belt into the gun's receiver _._

 **"** Excellent news!" Sarge said as he climbed out of the hog.

 **"** Excellent?!" Grif asked, confused by his NCO's apparent obliviousness towards the situation.

 **"** I was beginning to worry this wasn't gonna be much of a fight! But ya gotta hand it to those villains, _always_ one step ahead. _Heh heh heh._ You can learn a thing or two from them, Simmons," Sarge said.

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind if we survive, sir," Simmons said.

Grif hopped out of the hog _._

 **"** Any bright ideas, _Staff Sergeant?"_ Grif asked, emphasizing his rank.

 **"** The way I see it, we'll punch through the Imperial forces with an adrenaline-fueled slow-motion car crash! Thus creating an opening for us to escape _and_ allowing me to scratch one more thing off my "fuck it"-list," Sarge said.

 **"** How do you just _make_ something slow-motion?" Grif pressed.

 **"** If it's epic enough, _life finds a way," Sarge said, saying the last four words more slowly._

"Love the enthusiasm! It's great, sir. Really. But don't you think we could try something, that won't get my head blown off?" Simmons asked.

 **"** You could always switch seats with Grif," Sarge suggested.

 **"** Done," Simmons said almost immediately.

 **"** Screw this! We're regrouping with the rest of the Company," Grif said as he hopped back into the driver's seat.

Sarge hopped back into the passenger seat. While Simmons continued firing the chain gun at the endless hordes of Imperial troopers.

 **"** You just always have to suck the joy out of everything don't ya?" Sarge asked as Grif drove off.

Shepard, and Viper 1-1 were busy holding on to a section of the trenches in the center of the UNSC's defense.

Siris and Kicker were far from the action, looking at it through high powered scopes.

They fired their heavy rounds that tore Imperial troopers in half with one shot.

" _Major. We're displacing. You're gonna be without sniper support for 30 seconds,_ " Siris said.

Grey was still out helping the wounded, while Cobra, Felix, and Locus used their small arms weapons to hold the trenches.

Shepard and Felix used their standard firearms to keep the infantry at bay, while Locus brought his railgun to bare on an approaching enemy tank.

The barrel glowed blue, exploded, and magnetically propelled a tungsten round at the tank. It pierced the armor, but it took another two rounds for the tank to halt and burst into flames.

"They just keep coming!" Felix shouted.

"So then keep firing!" Locus suggested.

"What do ya' think I'm doing?" Felix asked before he fired another burst from his SMG.

"Complaining, as usual," Locus said.

"Will you two old ladies shut the fuck up?" Cobra asked, before he continued speaking into a radio set from a specialist, who was firing his rifle over the top of the trench. "All Helljumper units. This is Lt. Colby. We're calling in air support. Stand by to make for cover. Infinity, this is Viper 1-1. Is anyone there. Spartan Miller, are you there?"

"This Roland. Spartan Miller is occupied. What seams to be the trouble trooper?" the Infinity's AI asked.

" _Broken Arrow_. _I say again: Broken Arrow_. I need you to pound everything surrounding our positions at the center of the airbase," Cobra said.

"Are you sure? That's danger close trooper," Roland said.

"I know it's danger close, but I don't expect to be here much longer!" Cobra explained frantically.

All of a sudden, an Imperial mortar round landed right to the left of the specialist. He was killed, and so was his radio.

Cobra dropped the radio set and grabbed Shepard to get his attention.

"I called in fire support from the Infinity," Cobra said. "But the radio's out".

Shepard's eyes went wide. He then looked around at his fighting Hell-jumpers.

"Everyone fall back to the command center! Now!" The Major ordered.

Hundreds of Helljumpers beat a fighting retreat deeper into the airbase.

Seeing a chance to claim victory, the Empire pushed harder to take back their airbase.

ODST's covered their retreating comrades by turning to face the charging wave of Imperial forces.

They fired their rifles and grenade launchers, killing dozens of stormtroopers.

But then came the flame troopers, who marched forward and started firing streams of oily fire onto dozens of more Helljumpers.

As the remaining warthogs retreated, their gunners faced the opposite direction to spray the Imperial troopers with armor-piercing rounds.

The cyclops mech walked backwards and fired their 30mm cannons. Imperial troopers disappeared in a red mist if they were hit directly.

Dozens of Imperial Jet troopers flew overhead, firing their missiles on the base below. Clusters of Helljumpers were killed because of it.

The last of the Battalion gathered at the command center, which had been turned into a fortress.

Sniper teams and mortar men were on the roof. MG emplacements protected them from flying commandoes.

Foxholes were dug around the perimeter for the Helljumpers, while others went inside and bashed windows open to fire out of the building.

The last of the viechles gathered around the perimeter.

Of the original 600 Helljumpers in the Battalion, just under 200 remained. Many have suffered an injury of some kind.

As the Empire began to move in, their artillery began to pound the building from afar.

Why waste precious troops and tanks when you can be blasted from a distance?

Holes were blasted into the walls, and bodies were thrown up into the air from the force of the blasts.

But the Helljumpers kept fighting.

As they prepared for a final stand, a miracle occurred.

Hundreds of missiles slammed into the surface.

The Infinity's battlegroup had arrived.

The already devastated, and once proud, airbase was completely wiped out.

Smoke and dust were kicked up into the air from the deadly and ongoing display of firepower.

"Charge!" Shepard ordered.

Dozens of ODST's and all of the remaining viechles charged forward to rout the disorientated Imperial forces.

"There's too much dust, I can't see a thing!" one Stormtrooper shouted.

Whining and thudding could be heard through the smoke.

"What's that noise?" another stormie asked.

It was whine of several warthog engines and the stomps of cyclops feet could be heard.

Out of the dust, and in slow motion, a warthog flew out of the dust cloud and slammed into several unsuspecting stormtroopers.

The warthog, manned by Sarge, Simmons, and Grif drove towards the Imperial forces.

"Life finds a way!" Sarge shouted, having completed his dream of driving a warthog into battle in slow motion.

Warthogs and cyclops mechs charged out of the dust with the remaining scorpions and ably bodied troopers to attack the retreating Imperial forces.

They all fired in unison.

Tracers and HEAT rounds blasted into the flanks of the routed Imperial army.

A few minutes after they ceased firing, a pair of Charon-class light Frigates broke through the clouds with several heavy 'Pod' dropships, which were used to deploy prefabricated military structures for base deployment.

"Sir. Is that what I think it is?" Ashley 'Kicker' Williams asked as she took her helmet off.

"Yes Kicker it is," Major John Shepard confirmed. "It's the cavalry".

A landing zone was discovered by the UNSC ships, who landed near outside the airbase, which was too heavily damaged to be re-used.

Hours later, the UNSC invasion force passed through and headed for a ridge line that overlooked the capital city.

The base may not have been useful to the UNSC anymore, but it was also useless to the Empire and the Batarians.

The valiant Helljumpers once again came out on top for Mankind.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Ridgeline, 2 days later, 1 mile from former Imperial airbase, overlooking the Batarian capital city_.

For hours, the UNSC invasion force has been gathering for an all out assault on the city.

This was the culmination of 6 years of planning.

Ever since the Sith Empire defeated the Galactic Republic in 2555 (17 BBY in my AU timeline), while they consolidated their hold on the Andromeda galaxy, they've been trying to expand their territory and influence by allying themselves with the '3rd galaxy' (think 3rd world but in space).

The Empire's pissed off a lot of people. Most notably the UNSC, for allowing the Batarians to launch terrorist attacks on their frontier worlds.

Everyone thought that the Empire couldn't be stopped.

The UNSC went to prove them wrong.

Now, after defeating an Imperial invasion, and launching their own attacks on the Batarians, Vorcha, Krogan, Unggoy, Kig-Yar, Yanme'e, and the Jiralhanae, the UNSC and Swords of Sanghelios were ready to drive the Empire out of the galaxy for good.

And hopefully get the Imperial citizenry to rise up and make them a non-factor for the near future.

UNSC Marine forces amassed on the ridgeline.

Kodiak artillery pieces and heavy siege cannons were pointed at the city.

They've been blasting away at the city for two days.

They were eventually given the order to stop.

Once they did, UNSC B-65 Shortswords began to launch precision strikes on the Imperial perimeter, and carpet bombing missions inside the city.

Scorpian tanks, Warthogs of multiple variants, and dozens of troop carriers started to drive into the city, while AV-14 Hornets and AV-22 sparrow hawks flew overhead to provide air support.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Imperial Super Star-destroyer Chimera, Flagship of Grand Admiral Thrawn, Thrawn's personal quarters_.

Thrown looked around the vast collection of art within his room.

He had several of them.

One for a different enemy.

Agent Kallus, Admiral Konstantine, and Gov. Pryce were all standing at attention as Thrawn looked at the artwork that he had been studying.

One piece was a poem. The _Forward Unto Dawn_ Poem. **(Look it up, it's from Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn)**.

Another was a symbol of the phoenix emblem that was painted on the side of the UNSC Spirit of Fire.

Several UNSC recruitment and propaganda posters lined the walls.

There were paintings of Cole's last stand, the Fall of Reach, and the defense of Earth.

Even a statue of several Spartan-II's, Mankind's armored wonders.

"Grand Admiral. What is the point of all of this art?" Gov. Pryce asked.

Thrawn continued to study the artwork in the room.

As he walked about the room to continue observing, he acknowledged the officers in the room.

"To defeat an enemy, you must know them". Thrawn guided Kallus to the wall with propaganda posters. "Tell me Agent Kallus. What do you see here?"

One poster a had an Imperial Stormtrooper in the middle of it. The text at the bottom read: STOP THIS MAD BRUTE, OR HE WILL NEVER STOP!

Another poster had a concentration camp with prisoners, mostly alien, on the other side of a laser gate, which was guarded by more stormtroopers. The text at the bottom read: IMPERIAL ENSLAVEMENT! WE ARE FIGHTING TO PREVENT THIS!

"Well, Uhm. They appear to be propaganda posters that list the reasons that they are fighting," Kallus said.

"Correct," he said as he led Kallus over to the symbol of the phoenix emblem which is painted on some UNSC warships. Pryce and Konstantine followed close behind them. "Now what do you see here?"

Kallus looked at it.

"It reminds me of a symbol that some Rebel cells use".

"Correct. They my be different, but they have similar meaning. What you are looking at is a phoenix. A mythical bird in Terran culture that obtains new life by rising from the ashes of its predecessor," Thrawn said. "An look at those paintings. They are depictions of the greatest battle's from the Covenant War. The Terran's war against extinction.

"What does it have to do with the present?" Pryce asked.

"During the war, the Terrans were outmatched technologically, outgunned, and outnumbered. Yet, not only did they survive. They won, and became more powerful than before".

"It just seems like meaning-less art to me," Konstantine said.

Thrawn growled and lifted the admiral into the air by his collar.

Konstantine looked down in fear. As did the others. Thrawn calmed down and let him down.

"Apologies," he said as he straightened out Konstantine's uniform. "I often forget that not everyone appreciates art like myself. Take a closer look Konstantine. The Terrans battled against a technologically superior foe. They survived, and became stronger than ever. I will allow you to fill in the blanks".

Konstantine studied the art again.

"We can't defeat them with conventional Imperial thinking?" He answered in the form of a question.

"Precisely. And the Sangheili have already been enslaved by the Covenant that they used to be apart of. Like the UNSC ,I don't believe that they will follow the path that other species have taken. We must completely destroy them".

"And how do you suggest that we do that?" Pryce asked.

"For now, we will just have to fight them conventionally, and drive them out of our Sphere of Influence. But in the meantime, we will be on the look-out for these," Thrawn said as he pulled out his holo-projector.

It displayed a hologram of seven objects.

These objects were terrestrial ring worlds that were built to destroy all life within its reach.

The Forerunners gave this array a name.

They called it...Halo.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **And that's part 2 folks.**

 **I hope that you've enjoyed.**

 **Next chapter, Spartan-II's, Normandy (I hope), Thrawn attacks.**

 **Yes, I ripped out a few scenes and characters from Red vs Blue.**


	10. Chapter 10-Spartans Never Die!

**Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.**

 **Hey folks. Here's part 3 of the 2nd act of my SW/Halo x-over, They Shall Not Pass.**

 **I'm sorry, if It took me 84 billion years to update this story. I've been focused on two other stories, one of which I finished and the other I'm one chapter away from finishing.**

 **Excuses aside, I h** **ope that you enjoy.**

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _SSV Normandy, on patrol in the Harsa system, Batarian home sector, 4 days after the UNSC invasion began_.

Ahsoka Tano and the rest of the crew watched the view screen that showed everything that was happening outside the Normandy.

The Empire was on the verge of defeat in this sector. The Batarians were even worse off.

Debris fields were all that remained of the Imperial Navy in the system.

UNSC warships passed through the fields.

They were scanning for lifeforms in the Imperial wreckage, blasting any sign of life to kingdom come.

"What are they doing?" Liara asked. "Why are they firing on the wreckages?"

"Because they're destroying the life pods," Captain Anderson said.

"Huh! No wonder they could never join the Citadel!" Nihlus said.

"Isn't there a difference between war and cruelty?" Liara asked.

"War is cruelty," Mathieson said. "And until its over, the Empire has a lot to answer for".

Many worlds across the galaxy were under brutal Imperial rule. Some that were loyal to the Republic after the Sith took over, like Mathieson's world, still kept their autonomy but had to follow Imperial law and pay an un-Godly amount of taxes to Coruscant.

Not to mention the occasional genocide of entire planets, and the enslavement of entire species if they stepped out of line, curtesy of Imperial law.

An example had to be made of the Empire's cruel treatment of people across the galaxy.

Right now, the people of Earth and its colonies were doing just that: Punishing the Empire and their cronies for what they've done.

Ahsoka chose this moment to speak.

"Captain Anderson? So far we've seen how the UNSC fairs in space. If you don't mind, I'd like to get down there and see how they do on the ground," Ahsoka stated. "A recording of them beating the Empire could be good for winning over hearts and minds back home. Show people that the Empire really can be beaten".

Anderson looked at the screen, which was showing an image of the planet. He held his chin while deep in thought.

There was utter silence until he finally answered.

"Very well. You and Nihlus'll lead a team of volunteers to the surface while we take pictures of the battlefield. Shepard? I want you and another team of your choosing to stay here in reserve in case they need help," Anderson said.

She saluted. "Aye Aye Sir".

"Commander Tano? You and Nihlus start gathering your team. I'll tell Joker to have the ship hover above the drop zone. Everyone else, dismissed". Anderson ordered.

Everyone spread out to do as they were told.

Mathieson went up to Ahsoka.

"Ma'am? If you don't mind, I'd like to volunteer my services to the ground team," Ahsoka's second-in-command offered.

Ahsoka looked at him for a few seconds.

"I'm sorry Donneld. But the last thing that I need is for one of the two most important members of Project Fulcrum to be on the same battlefield as the other. I want you to stay up here and monitor the mission from orbit," Ahsoka said.

Mathieson lowered his shoulders in defeat.

"Besides, you and your wife have a kid on the way," she reminded him.

Mathieson looked up to face her and he smiled. "You're right ma'am. I'll be at my post if you need me," he said as he walked off. "Wait, what about the Clones?"

"Same goes for them. For now. I want as few ties back to the Republic as possible," she said.

LC Mathieson nodded and walked away.

Ahsoka went to meet up with Nihlus. Who, as it turned out, had already gathered the team.

Jane Shepard, Kaiden, and a squad of Systems Alliance Marines were ready to go. Garrus, Liara, and Tali were the reserve unit. They gathered at the end of the hanger.

Captain Anderson went to go brief them.

"Remember everyone: this is strictly a reconnaissance mission. Your job is to observe and document. You will not engage any hostiles unless absolutely necessary," Anderson said.

"Does this include the UNSC?" Garrus asked.

There was a pause.

"If they prove to be hostile, then you have my permission to defend yourselves," the Captain confirmed. Everyone nodded in agreement. "Good luck down there".

Suddenly, the hatch opened up, revealing the drop beneath them. A heavy breeze flew into the hanger, blasting everyone with cold air.

Everyone looked down.

"Wow, uh, that's...that's a long way down," Corporal Jenkins commented.

"You're not getting squeamish on us are ya hotshot?" Kaiden joked.

"No sir!" Jenkins said.

"So whoa's going first?" Another marine asked.

"Follow me boys!" Ahsoka shouted as she jumped off the ledge and down to the surface below.

The Marines looked down at her as she plummeted to the surface, amazed that she wasn't wearing rocket packs like they were.

"Wow, she's hot!" One marine commented.

"Hey I saw her first," another said.

"You're too late," Shepard said. "She's already got a man in her life".

All of the marines muttered in annoyance.

That's when Nihlus and Kaiden jumped.

"Come on, let's go, let's go. We don't have all day ladies," Shepard said as the Marines jumped off of the ledge.

"Geronimo!" Jenkins shouted before he jumped.

One Marine turned around and back flipped over the ledge, cheering as he went.

When the last Marine jumped, he threw up a salute to Jane and the captain just as he jumped.

She smiled and followed her men to the surface.

The wind struck everyone like a thousand tiny knives.

It was exhilarating.

Jane looked down at the recon team beneath her. Then she looked off in the distance and saw a battle raging on the outskirts of the Batarian capital.

She didn't like the UNSC. But she understood that they were fighting for what they believed and she respected that. And they were the first to finally tell the Empire to 'Fuck off'. That's more than she could say for literally anyone else.

And for all she knew, her twin brother was in that fight.

 _Give 'em Hell big brother_.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Khar'shan, Batarian home world, capital city, Spartan Blue Team_.

Far off in the distance, UNSC ground and naval assets were punching their way into the city.

The Imperial Naval forces in the system were driven back to Khar'shan's moon, making them a non-factor.

Stormtroopers and Batarian soldiers were trapped in the city with no hope for reinforcements. At least for now.

But that was't going to stop them from trying to prop up their puppet regime.

Deep behind enemy lines, a trio of Spartan II's from Blue Team were moving through the city, block by block.

The spartans were John-117, the leader, Kelly-087, the scout, and Fred-104, the CQB expert.

They rushed through the city in a guass hog, smashing their way through Imperial and Batarian checkpoints along the way.

When they were about half way through the city, heavy artillery began to rain down around them.

John swerved to avoid the explosions. That's when several Tie Bombers began to carpet bomb the street.

Kelly aimed the cannon up at the lead bomber.

It's starboard wing was blasted off, forcing it to veer left and crash into the bomber flanking it, taking out both of them.

The debris crashed into the street, getting in their way.

John avoided it but the artillery continued to crash down all around their hog.

"Easy cowboy!" Cortana exclaimed.

One round detonated beneath their jeep, lifting it into the air.

The three spartans were thrown free.

They all landed in the streets, causing more damage to the pavement than themselves.

When all three spartans were huddled together, more artillery rained down around them.

That's when John quickly deployed a bubble shield, protecting all three of them from the blast.

"Are you all okay?" Linda asked through their helmet sets.

"Were fine Linda," Kelly answered.

"That was a fun ride. I guess we're getting closer," Fred said.

"Cortana. Range to target!" John demanded.

"Approx. 3 clicks south of our position. It looks like the Empire has arranged a welcoming committee for you all along the way," Cortana said through John's head, and through all of the team's comm devices.

That's when three Imperial tanks and a company of stormtroopers, as well as Purge troopers, began to fill the street and surround their bubble shield.

"Any friendlies in the area that can lend a hand?" Fred asked.

"Avenger Company, led by Captain Jason Narville, is a few blocks from the target building. But their convoy is meeting heavy Imperial resistance. A squad of ODSTs from Viper Company, designated Alpha squad and led by SGT Rico Velasquez, is helping to clear the way. But they won't be able to help in time," Cortana said.

"So it looks like we're on our own," Fred said.

"We'll make it work. We always do," Kelly said.

"All right. Linda, I want you and the III's to provide overwatch and guard our extraction point," John said through his helmet radio, referring to Linda, Tom, Lucy, Ash, Olivia, and Mark.

" _On it Chief,_ " Linda said over the comm.

"Prepare to advance Blue Team, and don't fall behind," John said.

"Copy That!" The other two spartans said in unison just as their shield's power generator began to fade away.

The Imperial forces trained their weapons on the shield, ready to kill the spartans.

When the shield powered down and faded, John said "GO!", and the spartans charged towards the Imperial forces.

Red blaster bolts splashed off of their shields and cannon fire exploded all around them.

But each spartan moved like a freight train.

Kelly blasted away with her M90 Shotgun, blowing chunks out of stormtroopers that got in her way.

John used his MA5D Assault Rifle, which had an extended magazine with 60 7.62mm armor-piercing rounds.

Imperial stormtrooper armor was ripped apart, and troopers fell in droves.

Fred was using a spartan laser to blast open a path for Blue Team.

His shoulder mounted weapon glowed red before a beam of energy blaster towards an Imperial hover tank.

It melted open for a second before it went up in a brilliant explosion. Several stormtroopers were thrown in several different directions as a result.

As they charged, John and Kelly jumped onto the two remaining tanks. They each blasted the gunners and threw grenades into the open hatches.

They continued the charge just as the tanks blew up behind them.

Further down the road, Imperial forces were putting up a road block. They closed a massive 2 story wall over the road.

"Fred!" Chief said.

"I'm on it," Fred said as he blasted it open with his spartan laser.

All three spartans continued to move at an incredible speed, over 40 miles an hour, while killing everything in their way.

Stormtroopers continued to hit the pavement.

Another barrier was destroyed.

The next one had a tank in front of it, with several purge trooper surrounding it. There were snipers and turret gunners on the top of the barrier.

John and Kelly trust forward with their boosters and smashed through the purge troopers with their spartan charge ability.

John blasted another one apart with his MA5D.

Kelly placed a plasma grenade on another purge trooper as she ran passed it. It tried to take it off, but it was all in vain as it was vaporized in a brilliant explosion.

With the purge troopers destroyed, the tank and wall troopers fired more desperately at the spartans.

As Fred charged up his spartan laser, a few stormtroopers tried to ambush him. But he fired an SMG at them as he passed, killing them.

He fired his laser at the tank, destroying it.

The spartans then ran on top of it and jumped off into the air.

They were in the air, above the wall. The snipers and gunners looked at them with both fear and amazement behind their helmets.

That's when the spartans used their boosters to hover above them before they flew down.

All three spartans ground pounded the top of the wall, smashing through it to the other side, and causing Imperial troopers to fly in every direction.

With the spartans now on the other side, they continued to charge down the road.

There were no barriers left. The capitol building was within their grasp.

Red laser bolts flew out of the windows, and mortar fire from the roof crashed down all around them. The spartans brushed it off, and returned fire.

"Linda. I need you to give us some sniper fire. Target the mortar teams on the roof," Cortana ordered.

"Roger that Ma'am," Linda confirmed. Sniper fire from far away began to pick off the mortar crews one by one.

Fire from the windows was ceased. John spartan charged throw the gate and entered the courtyard with the other spartans behind him.

The spartans could see a shuttle on the roof.

"Blow it!" Chief ordered.

"On it," Fred said as he powered up his spartan laser.

Just as he was about to fire, his laser flew out of his hand. It flew into the hands of a Black cloaked Imperial Shadow Guard. They were the elite force sensitive leaders of the Emperor's royal guards. He chopped it in half with his staff. He made a hand signal.

"Chief. You've got company," Linda said.

Suddenly, a dozen royal guards jumped off of the roof, surrounding the spartans.

"Back to back," John ordered.

"Linda? We could use a hand here," Cortana said into the comm.

"Sorry ma'am, but we don't have a view of you guys. We can't see anything below the roof of the building," Linda said.

"Copy that Linda. Well, it looks like we're doing this the old way," Cortana said to the three spartans.

"Meh, we've been through worse over the years," Fred said.

"Why make it easy now?" Kelly quipped.

The shadow guard signaled with his hand, and the rest of the royal guards charged.

"Weapons free," John said.

The Spartans cut loose with their weapons. Several of the guards fell before the spartans ran out of ammo.

They were forced to resort to hand to hand combat. Unfortunalely for the guards, they were fighting spartans. Unlike Jedi, spartans didn't really care about morals on the battlefield.

A guard charged at Fred, but he side stepped him and drove a combat knife into the guard's neck.

He pulled the guard's staff from his lifeless hands and jumped behind a guard that was fighting John.

He used the staff to hold the guard close to him by his neck.

"We've gotta get the Admiral. Go! I've got this!" Fred said as he used the staff to put pressure on the guard's neck until it snapped.

John nodded and ran towards the building with Kelly, who disengaged her opponent to spartan charge through the front door.

Fred let the lifeless guard fall as he turned around and plunged his blade into another guard's gullet.

He turned to face the remaining two guards and their black clad leader.

They all cornered him, ready to gang up on him.

Spartan-104 brandished both of his combat knifes and assumed a fighting stance.

"Alright. Your '10,000 year Empire'...ends here," he said before they all charged at each other.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Batarian Capitol building, Khar'shan_.

John and Kelly continued to charge through the halls of the building.

They killed everything that stood in their way.

"Fred!" Kelly said, thinking about her teammate, who was outside, facing off against those guards.

"Focus on the mission. We'll hit the target," Chief said as they gunned their way through the building.

Both spartans eventually made it to the roof.

Unfortunately, they were too late.

The Imperial shuttle carrying Admiral Balak had already fled.

"Cortana. Track its trajectory," John said.

"Calculating. There's a cluster of buildings 14 miles outside the city limits. It looks like a safe house," she said.

"Mark its location and send the intel to command," John said.

"It's done," she said.

"Then let's go back and help Fred," Chief said.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Back in the_ _C_ _ourtyard_.

Fred was back outside, literally in a fight for his life.

Three guards charged at him. He sidestepped them and jabbed them in the back with his Combat Knives.

More guards charged at him. But they were all made short work of.

All that was left was the Shadow Guard.

Both fighters circled each other. After what seemed like an eternity, the Guard pounced at Fred.

He swung his bladed staff at the Spartan-II, the blade making a humming sound with each swing.

Fred dodged all of them.

That's when the Guard jumped back to avoid Fred's reach.

As he jumped back, he sent several force blasts towards Fred.

Fred dove away from each blast.

The Force shockwaves pounded craters into the ground.

The guard then force dashed forward, the force sending Fred through the air.

Fred hit the concrete wall, almost smashing through it. The Shadow guard took this opportunity to charge at Fred with his blade extended forward.

Reacting quickly, Fred swung his head away from the blade, allowing it to pierce the wall behind him.

Before the guard could withdraw the blade, Fred grabbed the bladed staff, sent the guard flying with a powerful kick, and broke the weapon in half over his knee.

After throwing the staff remains away, Fred saw the shadow guard trying to get back up.

 _Not on my watch!_

Fred charged forward, jumped up, and prepared for a ground pound.

He slammed into the ground, the force actually propelling the guard into the air.

Acting swiftly, Fred grabbed the ankles of the guard in midair, swung him over himself, and slammed him into the ground.

John and Kelly came back to the courtyard, just in time to see Fred drive a blade into the shadow guard's throat before he could crawl away. A few of the red cloaked guards lay dead at his feet.

As Fred swiftly withdrew the knife from his kill, he noticed his team approaching.

"Took you long enough," Fred said as he wiped the blood off of his blade. "Did you get Balak?"

Chief just starred at him through the helmet.

"Figures. What now Chief?" He asked.

"We have to go after him. He's on his way to a safe house outside the city," Chief said.

"But how are we going to go after him?" Kelly asked.

That's when, out of no where, an armored column roared into the plaza outside the courtyard.

UNSC Marines secured the building.

One of them wore a cap. On closer inspection, it looked like he was a Colonel.

He was surrounded by a familiar group of spartans: Blue Team.

Linda 058 and the spartan III's went up to him.

"Chief," Linda nodded.

John nodded back.

Tom and Lucy went to secure the building with a squad of Helljumpers, presumably Alpha squad.

Ash, Olivia, and Mark went to secure the perimeter with a platoon of Marines.

The UNSC Colonel and a bald headed Captain walked up to them.

Their name tapes read TEMPLAR and NARVILLE, respectively.

"Colonel Templar, Captain Narville," Chief said as he and his team stood at attention and saluted.

The two officers returned the salute.

"Good to see you Master Chief," Templar said as he shook his hand. He looked around at the destruction and dead bodies. "I see that you've been busy".

"Yes Sir, but our target got away," Cortana said. "He's possibly held up in a heavily guarded safe house outside the city limits".

"Huh, then I guess you'll need back up," Templar said as he turned to Narville. "Captain? I want you to take Avenger Company and assist the Spartans as needed. I'll take the rest of the Regiment and secure the suburbs".

"Aye Sir," Narville said as he went to rally his platoons.

"So...What's the plan Chief?" Linda asked.

Master Chief looked at Linda's sniper rifle, and then he looked at the team of ODSTs that were with Avenger Company.

"I have an idea," Chief said.

"Is it a less noisy plan?" Cortana asked.

Chief didn't say anything. He just walked up to the UNSC's makeshift armory and grabbed a rocket launcher.

It was an M41 rocket launcher. AKA 'the Jackhammer'.

With two 102mm barrels and homing missiles, it was the most powerful anti-tank weapon used by UNSC infantry.

"Hm. I guess not," Cortana said as the Chief shouldered it.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _On ridge overlooking the city_.

Ahsoka and the rest of the team from the Normandy watched the footage again.

They saw UNSC Spartans crashing through the barriers like they were nothing.

" _Holy Fuck_!" The SA Marine recording it said while rolling the film.

Kaiden, Jenkins, and a third Marine named Robertson, had all gone into the city to record the UNSC invasion and see how they faired against the Empire.

Based on what they've seen so far, it was a mismatch, with the UNSC on top.

But with the spartans...it wasn't even a fair fight.

"So these are the armored wonders that the UNSC glorified back during the Covenant War? I guess they're okay," Nihlus said, trying to be unimpressed. He failed at that.

"I thought I've seen everything after the wars that I've fought in. But this..." Ahsoka said before she stopped herself. "We need to show the Alliance and the Citadel what we've seen here".

"You hear that Captain?" Jane asked.

" _I did_ ," Anderson said. He was listening over the radio from orbit. " _I want you and the others to move west to RECON that Batarian safe house ASAP_ ".

"Yes Captain," Ahsoka said.

They started to hear explosions again. They rumbled through the ground and could be felt for miles.

The rapid tapping noise of UNSC automatic weapons fire echoed through the air.

Everyone looked back at the city.

A battle was raging on the edge of the city, in the suburbs.

"Looks like the UNSC's on the move again," one of the other marines said as he looked through a pair of binoculars.

"Kaiden, I want you and the others to get back here. I want you out of that mess over there," Jane ordered into her omni-tool.

" _Yes ma'am. But I think that there's something that you should know_ ," Kaiden said.

"And what's that Lieutenant?" Jane asked.

" _The spartans are on the move again_ ," Kaiden said.

"Where are they going?" Jane asked.

There was a pause.

" _Same place we're headed Ma'am_ ," Kaiden said.

" _Commander Shepard, Commander Tano. We have a new problem up here_ ," Joker called in frantically over the comm system.

"What now Joker?!" Jane asked demandingly.

 _"It's the Empire. They're here,_ " Joker said.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _UNSC Infinity's bridge, in orbit above Kahar'shan_.

In the space that lied between Khar'shan and its moon, a battle was taking place.

The Flagship of the UNSC Navy, INF-101 _Infinity_ , was leading in the fight to drive the Empire out of the system, and hopefully...the galaxy.

By now, the UNSC had driven the Batarians and the Imperials away from Khar'shan, and were working on driving them deeper in the system.

MAC rounds exploded out of the bows of every UNSC warship.

Yellow streaks flew towards the enemy fleet.

Warships were gutted and sheared from stem to stern.

Lord Hood and Captain Lasky looked at the holo-map of the battle.

It looked like the Empire was being routed.

"Roland, status report," Lasky ordered.

The Yellow AI materialized on the holo-table.

"Sir, the Imperial Fleet's falling apart. And the Batarians appear to be scattering across the system," Roland said.

This was actually quite common.

Every time the Empire was defeated by the UNSC in this campaign, the Batarians would scatter and flee.

Sometimes without a fight.

They would either retreat deeper into Batarian territory, surrender, or escape all together to become pirates.

For all of the pompous saber rattling and bombastic rhetoric, the Batarians were push overs that needed the Empire.

"Good. Keep the pressure on. I want the Empire kicked out of this system," Hood ordered. "Oh and uh...make sure the Batarians don't live on to run away again. It ends here".

"Aye Sir," Lasky said before he began to direct the ship's crew.

As the UNSC fleet continued to hammer away at the Imperial Naval forces, several UNSC Corvettes and Frigates broke off from the main fleet and went after some of the retreating Batarian warships.

The small ships fired their light MAC cannons and unleashed a storm of Archer missiles onto the retreating Batarians.

Several enemy ships exploded.

Life pods were jettisoned from the dying ships, but they didn't last very long in a storm of UNSC 50mm AA fire.

As more and more Imperial ships began to falter and die, Tie fighters were given less and less places to dock. Their only choice was to fight or die.

It was usually both.

Not much later, the Empire began to turn and retreat deeper into the system.

"We did it sir. Congratulations," Lasky said.

"I'm not the one who should be congratulated Captain. Your crew performed admirably," Hood said. "Now I want you to pull some of the fleet back to support our forces on the ground. The rest of the fleet'll run the rest of those bastards down".

"Aye Sir," Lasky said.

"Sir! We're picking up multiple new contacts showing up on our scanners. One of them is about 3.5 times larger than the _Infinity_ ," Roland said.

"On screen," Lasky ordered.

Roland did as he was asked and showed what he was seeing.

A massive Star-Destroyer, the largest ever seen, was being escorted by 8 Imperial Battle groups. That meant 48 Star Destroyers, and all of their escort and support ships, faced off against the Infinity, and Battle Group Dakota.

The Massive Star Destroyer itself was about 19,000 meters in length. That was about 12 miles long.

" _Oh My God!_ " Hood exclaimed underneath his breath.

The two fleets stared down at each other for a few moments.

No one made a sound, until the comm officer spoke up.

"Sir, we're being hailed," he said.

"On screen," Lasky ordered.

The officer did so, and the screen came to life, showing a blue skinned humanoid male with red eyes and black hair. He wore a white officer's uniform like Hood did. Hood also recognized Governor Pryce, Admiral Konstantine, Admiral Titus, and Captain Brunson from the ONI files he read earlier. They were the Command staff for all Imperial forces in the Milky Way. But he didn't recognize the alien. Frankly he was surprised that aliens were serving the Sith Empire's military.

 _I suppose every species has its place in the Imperial hierarchy, just like the Covenant_.

For a moment, neither he nor the blue alien spoke.

That's when the blue alien broke the ice.

"Greetings, Lord Terrance Hood. Fleet Admiral of the UNSC Navy, and Commander-in-Chief of the UNSC's emergency Military Government. I must say, your offensive against our allies caught the Imperial command staff by complete surprise. It is an honor for you to be my opponent in this battle," the figure said.

"And you are...?" Hood asked.

"Oh, where are my manners? I am Grand Admiral Thrawn, the supreme naval commander of all Imperial Naval forces in this galaxy. And I am here to let you know that your presence here is not appreciated by our Emperor," Thrawn said.

"Your failed invasion wasn't exactly looked upon very highly either," Hood calmly quipped.

Thrawn smiled and chuckled.

"It was unfortunate, but it was necessary. It is our goal to achieve order for the rest of the galaxy, as decreed by our Emperor. It's not our fault that your people are...un-cooperative," Thrawn said.

"Well you're forgetting one thing," Hood said.

"And what's that?" Thrawn asked, slightly surprised.

"This isn't your galaxy," Hood said.

Thrawn frowned a little.

"Your defiance, though admirable, is foolish," he said.

"Your Emperor's invasion was foolish," Hood said.

"So be it," Thrawn said. He turned to his officers on the screen with him. "Destroy the fleet, but keep the Infinity intact...for now".

The screen went black.

"Sir! Enemy fighters incoming," someone called out.

The young officer was correct. Hundreds and hundreds of Imperial fighters swarmed out of the Imperial capital ships, ready to swarm the UNSC fleet.

Imperial transports also seemed to be moving towards the planet, ready to put boots on the ground.

"All Hands, this is Commander Bradley. Imperial Reinforcements are here. Stand by the repel the attackers," Lasky's XO shouted into the PA system.

UNSC servicemen and women across the Fleet rushed to their stations.

"Sir...What are your orders?" Lasky asked.

Hood looked at Lasky.

"I want us to hold this system. Roland? Send a message to all available battle groups in the region. Redirect them here. And send another message to our forces in Krogan, Kig-Yar, Unggoy, and Vorcha territory. Pull them out and tell them to return home," Hood ordered.

"Aye Sir," Roland saluted before he disappeared inside of the holo-table.

Lasky was a little confused.

Hood decided to educate him.

"If this is where the action is going to be, then I want to make sure that the Empire walks away with a second black eye and a broken neck. If we can take out Thrawn and those Imperial HVI's, then there forces in this sector'll wither on the vine. With the Empire's puppets conquered, their regional commanders dead, and with another failed invasion, the Empire'll have no choice but to come to the negotiating table," Hood said.

Lasky shook his head in understanding.

Moments later, the battle for the Skyllian Verge...for the galaxy...reignited.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Avenger Company, 7 miles from suspected safe house of Adm. Balak_.

A few miles outside of the city, a convoy of UNSC viechles continued to plow across the landscape in an attempt to oust the Empire's puppet in the region.

Over a hundred UNSC Marines, along with several armored viechles, moved with haste.

The convoy kept moving with all of the speed that it could muster.

That's when powerful energy blasts began to slam down into the ground around them.

Small arms fire also seemed to be pouring out of the tree line on the ridge overlooking the convoy.

"Shit! Ambush!" One Marine called out, as several other marines fell to the ground, dead.

"They're in the trees!" Another one called out.

"Dismount. Move move move!" Captain Narville ordered just as the Marines began to pile out of the M831 Warthog transports that they were riding. "And spread the viechles out!"

On Narville's orders, Several UNSC viechles dispersed, but not before a transport hog and a regular M12 warthog were blasted into the air, their burning wreckages crashing back into the ground.

M12 Warthogs and M650 Mastodons spread out and returned fire, their high caliber M41 LAAGs ripping into the tree line.

That's when Blue Team jumped into the fray.

Fred and Kelly joined the Marines, who dug in on either side of the road that they travelled down moments ago.

They fired back with their small arms weapons.

Some of the Marines even set up mortars before they started dropping ordnance on top of the enemy forces that were concealed in the trees on the ridge.

Trees were blasted apart, wooden splinters flying everywhere.

It helped to keep the enemy forces pinned and disorientated.

"It looks like we've got their attention," Kelly said into Fred's helmet comm.

"Agreed," Fred said before he reached for his helmet comm. "III's! It's your show now".

Fred used a series of hand signals to get the Marines to cease fire, which they did.

But the Imperial fire kept coming, until they heard the sounds of screaming and weapons being fired in another direction.

The UNSC personnel around the convoy watched as the enemy fire began to die down until nothing could be heard anymore.

That's when Fred zoomed in with his visor and saw Olivia G291 on the ridge. She was waving them forward.

Fred nodded. "All clear sir!" He called out to Narville.

At the end of the fight, 4 warthog wreckages and 30 Marine corpses littered the ground.

"Everyone back into the viechles. We're moving forward," he said.

When everyone was back in the viechles, the convoy moved up the road until they got to the top of the ridge that the enemy once occupied.

There were dead Imps everywhere. All of whom laid at the feet of 5 triumphant Spartan IIIs.

As the convoy moved up, everyone got a closer look at who was shooting at them.

Fred and Kelly walked up to Tom-B292 and Lucy-B091, who were looking over some of the bodies.

There were about a dozen of them.

They were stormtroopers with polished black armor.

"Death Troopers," Kelly said.

Imperial Death Troopers. The Elite of the Imperial Army, and the most loyal Stormtroopers in the Sith Empire.

"It looks like it," Tom said. "The Empire's calling all hands on deck for this one".

"I want all Spartans and platoon leaders to rally on me!" Narville called out.

Blue Team and the heads of every platoon in the company went over to where Narville was.

The buzzcut Marine Captain looked over the valley that was between the ridge they occupied and the safe house.

They all looked up in awe of what was being dropped down into it.

Several Imperial transports were hovering over the valley.

They were carrying two AT-AT walkers each.

The gray transports gently set them down.

The massive armored behemoths marched forward, their armored feet making a crunching noise that vibrated through the ground.

Several Imperial Star Destroyers were also in the atmosphere.

Each warship's triangular design knifed through the clouds, splitting them apart until they were totally visible.

Other transports began to deploy bases on the surface.

Gunships, Tie fighters, and Tie Bombers screeched through the air.

"Holy Fucking Shit!" One of the Marines exclaimed.

"This cannot be happening," Another one said.

"Stow the belly-aching Marine," Narville said as he turned around. "Any suggestions?"

There was silence between all of the UNSC personnel present.

"Sir...we're not equipped to take on an entire Imperial Invasion force of this scale. I suggest we cut our losses and fall back to the capital and regroup with the rest of our forces," Kelly suggested.

"But what about your teammates?" Narville asked.

"John and Linda can handle themselves," Fred said. "And besides...Spartans never die".

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _1/2 mile away from the safe house_.

Petty Officer First Class Linda-058 was an expert marksman.

Using her customized 'Nornfang' Sniper Rifle, she scanned the building.

There were regular Imperial stormtroopers on all of the balconies, and several more were in the courtyard.

They also occupied several heavily entrenched turrets. Both Anti-personal and anti-viechular.

There were also Scout trooper snipers on the roof and Purge Trooper Battle Droids that guarded courtyard, and the checkpoints with several more troopers.

"Looks like they're expecting a serious fight," one of the two ODSTs with her, jammer, said.

"They sure as hell got it," the other one, hooper, said.

" _Linda, we're in position,_ " John said over the comm.

"Copy that Chief," Linda said. "Awaiting your signal".

A few seconds later, several rockets flew into the building, destroying the building's outer walls and a few Purge Troopers.

Explosions caused severe damage to the building itself.

Windows were shattered from the concussive force and Stormtroopers fell over the railings that they patrolled.

Suddenly, the Chief and the other 4 Helljumpers (Rico, Sev, Garza, and Nakto) rushed down the hill and attacked the disorientated Imperial attackers with all guns blazing.

John pushed into the courtyard and began to clear out the stormtroopers, with Alpha Squad hanging back a little to provide fire support and clean up what John missed.

At the same time, Imperial Purge Troopers marched up and tried to push John and the Helljumpers out of the courtyard.

But Linda had their number.

She fired her sniper rifle, and 14.5X114mm explosive tipped rounds exploded out of the barrel of her 'Nornfang'.

The Purge trooper's heads literally exploded as they went down.

She fired so fast that John wasn't able to distinguish which one she targeted first. She was that good.

Jammer used her spotter drone to provide the team on the ground with some fire support.

It had forerunner technology incorporated into it, so it fired rounds that were each the equivalent of a Promethean light rifle.

Imperial scout troopers were speared through the head with light rounds.

The enemy fire from the turrets on the balconies was quite heavy. Some of those weapons were designed to stop viechles.

Linda saw John throw down bubble shield to protect the Helljumpers.

" _Linda. We could use a hand here_ ," Cortana said into her comm.

"Affirmative Ma'am". Linda said.

That's when Jammer had to disengage her drone. When it returned to her, Linda turned to the two other Marines.

"Go down there and give them a hand," Linda ordered as she began to scan the balcony. "I've got this".

"Aye Ma'am," Hooper said as he and jammer went down to help their team.

Linda decided to destroy the turrets to.

She aimed at each weapon emplacement, making sure to hit the gunners.

She fired her rifle. Explosive rounds ripped apart each turret, as well as the gunners behind them.

From quite a distance away, Linda could hear the roar of a tie fighter engine.

A quick glance to the left revealed a flight of two Tie fighters screeching towards the 3 story building.

Whether they were here to escort Balak's drop-ship or provide close air support, it didn't matter.

They were a threat either way.

She sighted up with her rifle and fired.

Two perfectly placed shots pierced through the viewport of each ship.

Both cockpits exploded from her sniper rounds.

The tie fighters spiraled out of control, crashing into the valley below.

She went back to scanning for targets with her rifle, just in time to see the Chief spartan charge through the front wall. Two ODSTs (Sev and Garza) followed him while the rest held the courtyard.

"We're moving into the building now. Keep scanning the balconies for targets," Cortana ordered.

"Roger that Ma'am," Linda responded and began to scan the windows and balconies. All she saw were dead bodies from Stormtroopers that she killed earlier.

There were no targets.

Suddenly she saw a few red dots appear on her motion tracker.

They were right behind her.

"Freeze! Don't move!" Someone behind her ordered.

Through his voice, she could feel him a couple of feet behind her.

She looked over her and saw several Death Troopers stand behind her, all with their weapons trained on her.

Linda swiftly got up and reached for her sidearm.

As a spartan-II, Linda, like all of her brothers and sisters in the Spartan-II program, was quicker than the average human in every way by a great margin.

She could think faster and move faster.

As she reached for her sidearm and turned around, it seemed like everything was in slow-motion except her.

She swung her pistol arm at the Death trooper that threatened her and pistol-whipped him with an M6D magnum.

The blow was so powerful and quick, that the Death trooper's helmet caved in and his neck snapped back.

He was instantly killed with one blow.

The other troopers opened fire when their comrade was killed. Red Laser bolts from their heavy weapons and high powered rifles impacted her shields, draining them significantly.

But it was too late for them.

Using her M6D Magnum, she sent a 12.7mm armor piercing round into each trooper's head.

As soon as she shot the last trooper, the first one was just starting to hit the ground.

Her pistol barrel smoked. Seven Imperial Death Troopers lay dead at her feet.

After staring down at them for what seemed like an eternity, a voice from her helmet comm snapped her back into reality.

" _Linda! Balak's drop ship is getting away. I need you to take out his pilot_ ," Cortana ordered.

"Copy that," Linda said as she dropped back down to her 'Nornfang' and went back to doing what she did best: Cause misery and terror from a distance.

At first, she didn't see anything as she scanned the building.

That's when she saw a black Imperial drop ship appear from behind the building.

She steadily went through the 5 steps of sighting up a target known as BRASS.

 _Breath._

 _Relax._

 _Aim._

 _Sight._

 _Shoot_.

Linda saw the dropships's cockpit, and the pilot's face.

She fired, and a round exploded from the barrel of her rifle, flying straight and true towards her target.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Smoke poured out of the gunship, who's pilot had his brains splattered across the cockpit by an explosive round.

It spun out of control.

And began to descend towards the valley floor.

It crashed into the ground.

Chief jumped down to inspect the wreckage.

He found a stormtrooper crawling away from the wreckage, leaving a trail of blood behind him. He expired right after that.

Another survivor aimed a pistol at John. It must've been damaged, sense it exploded in his hand.

John plunged his blade into the throat of the screaming trooper, silencing him.

"Nice to see your luck is holding out," Cortana said to the Chief. He didn't respond.

He continued to look around the crash.

" _Chief, thermals are showing one last life sign onboard,_ " Linda said.

"Copy that," Chief said.

" _Want me to make it cold?_ " She asked.

"No," he said.

He looked around the wreckage and switched to promethean vision.

His HUD turned blue, while the foreign subject turned red.

He punched through the wreckage and pulled a piece of debris from the ship, revealing a frightened Batarian, who had an injured leg, arm, and head.

But he was still capable of moving on his own.

"Alright. You found me. Now you can show me that 'humane treatment of POWs' that your leaders are always spouting about," Balak mocked as he raised his hands over his head. "It doesn't matter anyway. The Empire is retaking the system as we speak. The Liberation of our people is at hand. And I will be freed. And I will witness the day that your people are lined up in chains for my labor camps".

John grabbed him by his throat.

Balak struggled and made choking sounds as the Chief used his powerful grip of Balak.

"What are you doing?" He choked out.

John held him closer. Balak could see his terrified reflection in the Chief's golden visor.

"The Rules Of Engagement for this mission was 'enemy expendable'. Which you are," Chief said as he crushed Balak's neck.

The Batarian dictator twitched in the Spartan's iron grip before he dropped him to the ground, dead.

"Cortana. Call in an evac and rally the team," Chief said.

"It's done". Cortana said. "Prowler is en route".

A few minutes later, the Prowler (which flew in on auto-pilot) landed in the courtyard outside the safe house.

The ODSTs from Alpha Squad climbed aboard. John and Linda followed.

One of the Helljumpers jumped inside the cockpit, took off, and headed back to the city.

The Spec Ops Prowler cloaked as it flew over the valley, which was now overrun by Imperial forces, to reach the UNSC-occupied capital.

It was time to regroup with the rest of the UNSC forces.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _SSV Normandy Shore Party's basecamp, on a ridge overlooking the capital city_.

On the outskirts of the Capital city, UNSC and Imperial forces fought viciously for the future of the Galaxy.

Ahsoka, Jane, Kaiden, and Nihlus all watched the battle unfolding through their binoculars.

UNSC Infantry and Armored units blasted away at each other with their Imperial counterparts at close range.

Fighters from both sides fought for control of the skies, while escorting bomber units to their targets.

Ahsoka looked up with her binoculars into the night sky directly above her, to see little stars moving back and forth, with occasional flashes surrounding them.

On closer inspection, she could see shapes, colored dark gray (UNSC) and light gray (Imperial), hammering away at each other.

Some of the shapes Ahsoka saw, from both sides, exploded. It was like she was watching a holo-vid game in slow motion.

It was quite incredible.

Explosions, tracer rounds, and ship lights illuminated the night sky.

The UNSC fleet had range, but they didn't have the numbers that the Empire brought to the table. Not to mention the bottomless manpower reserves and the abundant industrial capacity.

"Look at that," Ahsoka said, encouraging the others to look at the same space battle that Ahsoka was witnessing.

As an intelligence officer/spy, Ahsoka made sure that she was recording everything she saw in order to give it to the Alliance High Council, and her real superiors. It would also make for excellent gossip with her friends and lover.

"My God. They're really going at each other," Kaiden commented.

They watched as both sides continued to blast away at each other, showing no mercy towards the other.

 _"Shepard? Anything new to report?"_ Anderson asked after his hologram appeared.

Jane scrambled to tap her ear piece and answer.

"No Sir. How about on your end?" She asked.

 _"Yes. According to our other spec ops teams in the other regions, the UNSC's pulling it's forces out of every theater that they're involved in except this one. Instead, they're putting all hands on deck for this theater,"_ Anderson said.

"Why aren't they pulling out," Nihlus said.

" _Because they didn't come here to run. They came here to make the Empire walk away with a neck brace in addition to the bloody nose they received over two weeks ago_ ," Anderson explained.

Everyone looked at each other.

Jane looked back at the hologram of Anderson.

"Anything you need us to do sir?" She asked.

" _We're near the planet's moon, so we'll be awhile yet. Just keep gathering intel in the meantime,_ " Anderson ordered.

"Yes Sir," Jane said before the hologram disappeared. "Well you heard him ladies and gentlemen".

Everyone went back to watching both sides pummel each other.

No one would say anything, but they were all thinking the same thing: 'How would the UNSC get out of this sticky situation?'

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **Hope you all enjoyed.**

 **I recently put all of stories in a timeline, in my profile to put everything in my AU into perspective, and I'll update the list as I publish new stories.**

 **I'll try to type the future chapters more often.**

 **Until next, this is Grubkiller, over and out.**


	11. Chapter 11-Victory or Death

**Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.**

 **Hey folks.**

 **Here's Chapter 11. I'm done categorizing my chapters by acts and parts. It's repetitive. It's hard enough trying to come up with a name for each chapter. Which is something that is only unique to this story that I wrote.**

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 _ **Also, important message : I've kind of lost interest in this story. You see, this story is apart of my first alternate universe (Which is why I put AU1 in the title). But I've lost interest in writing my first AU. I want to start writing stories for my 2nd alternate universe (AU2). And I've also started writing 'Return of the Sith' (which can be apart of either AU) and I'm really enjoying writing that new story. **_

_**But fear not. I'm not going to completely cut away this story. I'm gonna finish it off with 1 or 2 more chapters after this one. And I'm not done with SW/Halo crossovers. I'm gonna write a new one (That WILL NOT have Mass effect in it, Thank God! It will just be a pure SW/Halo x-over). It will either be a SW crossover or a Rebels crossover.**_

 _ **If you want to learn more about it, visit my profile. I have a description of the story in a list of my stories. My first list will be AU1 and have 'They Shall Not Pass' in it. My other list will be my list of AU2 stories, which will contain this new Halo-x-over story I'm talking about.**_

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 **The Battle for Khar'shan continues.**

 **Be sure to leave your thoughts down in the review section when you're done.**

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _On the Bridge of the UNSC Infinity, flagship of Battle Group Dakota_.

A massive void filled in the space between the UNSC and Imperial fleets.

The void itself was filled with explosions and fighters from both sides.

Imperial Tie fighters swarmed over the UNSC warships.

Many of them were destroyed by the outnumbered, but superior, Broadswords and Longswords of the UNSC. Other Tie fighters were ripped to shreds by 50mm AA defenses.

Despite the casualties that the UNSC was inflicting upon the Empire, they were outnumbered. And their defenses were being worn down.

More and more ships from both sides were coming to providing much needed aid.

The UNSC could only afford to bring in available ships from the other theaters of war, however.

Meanwhile, the Empire had bottomless reserves of manpower and metal. Ergo, they had an unlimited surplus of materials, with which they could wage war.

As Lord Hood stood on the bridge of the bridge of the Infinity, Captain Lasky was giving orders to his crewmen amidst a wave of transmissions that showed how the battle was unfolding.

"Sir! Starboard shields are at 63% and dropping," someone shouted.

"That Dreadnaught just launched another wave of fighters," someone said.

"Alert, Enemy reinforcements coming out of hyperspace," a crewman said as another battle group of Star-Destroyers jumped out of FTL below the ISD _Chimera_ , their escorts and support ships in tow.

"Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! We're going down...GAWH!" Someone screamed. The sound being followed by static.

Small explosions dotted the hulls of several UNSC warships, some of them going supernova seconds later, as Tie Fighters continued to swarm over and around them.

The Imperial Fleet sent out a couple battle groups to engage the UNSC fleet.

"Target those bastards and fire at will!" Hood ordered.

As if on queue, the bows of several Autumn class cruisers and the Infinity exploded, sending several MAC rounds down range. The Star-Destroyers didn't stand a chance against the Infinity's CR-03 Series 8 MAC cannons. They bore right through their hulls and out the other sides. They exploded right after.

But the Autumn class cruisers had more trouble. The ships needed more firepower to take out these new Imperial ships. They were Imperial-II class Star Destroyers, which had better armor, better shielding, and more powerful weapons than Imperial-I class Destroyers.

Two Autumn class ships fired a heavy MAC round round at a Star Destroyer, taking out their shields and taking chunks out of their hulls. They would then finish them off with long range missiles.

The strategy always worked. But only if they were a great distance away and outnumbered the Imperial forces.

The attacking Imperial battle groups had 8 more Star Destroyers, and their support ships. And they were in range to fire on the UNSC forces.

A storm of green lasers spewed out of the barrels of the Imperial warships. They blanketed the hulls of the UNSC ships.

Titanium armor was peeled away, and green lasers burrowed into critical parts of the UNSC ships.

Several UNSC ships exploded, and a dozen more were damaged.

"Return fire!" Lasky ordered.

The UNSC rammed more and more shells into the Imperial ships, devastating their shields.

After that, hundreds of missiles poured out of the archer pods in the hulls of the UNSC ships. They rained down on the unshielded Imperial Capital ships, while completely destroying a few of the smaller support ships.

What remained of the Imperial sortie limped away, back towards the ISD _Chimera_.

"Roland! Damage Report!" Commander Bradley ordered.

"Sirs, we've lost several of our ships. Two cruisers, a destroyer, and 4 frigates. The rest of the fleet is reporting damage of some type. Our fighter support is down 25%. The Empire's second wave of fighters is down 40%. That attack fleet suffered greatly, but there's way more where they came from," Roland said.

"Why aren't they attacking with their full strength?" Commander Bradley asked.

"Because, Thrawn's testing our strength. He's throwing fighters at us to wear down our defenses, and he's sending his forward echelons to sweep for mines and test our fleet's capabilities. All while he keep's his best in reserve," Hood deduced.

"So they're just going to keep sending fighters our way?" Bradley asked. "For how long?"

"Until Thrawn feels that our defenses are exhausted. Or until he get's board," Lasky said.

"Either way, we won't last much longer up here," Bradley said.

"Agreed. How long until we've evacuated our ground forces?" Hood asked.

"According to Gen. Marshall, Fourteen hours sir," Roland said. "Oh and sirs...Enemy landing craft have been spotted heading for the surface. They're being escorted by Tie fighters and light cruisers".

"Dear God. Tell General Marshall that we may not have fourteen minutes. I want him and his forces up here in less than half of that. Understood?" Hood demanded of the yellow AI in WWII garb.

"Yes Sir," Roland said before he disappeared into the console.

Hood turned back to Lasky and Bradley.

"In the meantime, business as usual. I want Commander Palmer and her spartans to get out there with some booster frames, and see if we can't punch through the Empire's defenses," Hood ordered.

"Aye Sir," both men said as they snapped a salute.

Hood went back to looking out the viewport, deep in contemplation as he watched both sides continue to slug it out.

 _We'll make it through this. We have too_.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _En route to Batarian Capital City, Under UNSC Occupation_.

Lt. Iden Versio and her flight of Tie Interceptors from the 181st squadron flew over the Khar'shan landscape.

Her squadron was on its way to Khar'shan's capital.

Their mission: reduce the UNSC's outer defenses to rubble.

As they flew through the night sky, they could see the city on the horizon.

UNSC Longswords could be seen coming in to engage the Ties.

" _All flight leaders. This is Black Leader. Pick your targets and engage the enemy. We must protect our bombers,_ " Major Fel of the 181st ordered.

"Aye Aye Sir," Versio and the other pilots acknowledged.

The Longsword intercepters swooped in, As Versio's squadron entered the fray, and attacked the Imperial formation.

Imperial Tie Bombers were shot up and started to burn before they began to nose dive into the surface below, trailing smoke as they did.

Flames licked across the ground around where the bombers crashed, illuminating the night sky.

The UNSC's actions successfully forced the Imperial fighters to break off and attack the Longswords that were attacking the bombers.

"Gray squadron, pick your targets and fire at will," Versio ordered.

The squadron broke apart and went to swat the UNSC fighters, that were harassing the Tie bombers, out of the sky.

Vicious dogfights broke out in the air above Khar'shan.

Fighters from both sides exploded and crashed into the surface.

Tie Interceptors used their missiles, while Longswords used flares to throw off the Imperial missiles.

The Radio chatter was confusing, as both good and bad news were being reported left and right.

" _I'm hit, I'm hit! I'm going down!_ "

" _Nice job Black five!_ "

" _Watch your stabilizer Gray six!_ "

" _I've got a target lined up, missile pods away!_ "

" _I've got two on my tail! I can't shake 'em!_ "

"Don't worry pilot, I'm on 'em," Versio said as she got behind the two UNSC longsword fighters that were pursuing a Tie Interceptor.

She waited until the targets were lined up with her targeting computer.

She pressed down on the trigger, cutting loose with a spray of blaster fire.

One of the UNSC fighters were hit and spun out of control before exploding. The other one broke off.

" _Thanks Lieutenant, they almost had me,_ " the pilot said.

"No problem pilot," she said as she went to pursue the remaining longsword when she saw that it had joined the remaining UNSC fighters

They seemed to be retreating. But she couldn't be certain.

" _They're retreating. Let's get after 'em!_ " One gung-ho pilot exclaimed.

 _"This is Major Fel to all units. Do not engage. Stay on mission. Tighten up formation around the bombers. We'll deal with their fighters later. For now, let's focus on giving our men on the ground some support,_ " Fel ordered from the lead fighter.

Iden Versio and her squad hated letting the enemy get away. They hated the UNSC for daring to defy the Empire and attack its innocent allies.

But everyone silently, and reluctantly, formed up on the bombers.

As they began their final approach on the UNSC firebases on the outskirts of the city, AA guns and missiles began to be launched up at them from the UNSC defense towers.

Explosions went off all around the Imperial fighter craft.

More Ties were ripped apart.

More lives were lost to UNSC Brass and Steel.

But the Empire's resolve had hardened, and their rage had boiled, since the UNSC defeated them weeks ago.

This was a rematch that they intended to win, or die trying.

As they flew over the enemy bases, the Tie Bombers dropped their payload.

Proton bombs, that glowed blue, fell to the surface and pounded the UNSC structures into burning piles of metal.

Fires raged and smoke rose from the destruction on the ground.

" _All squadrons, return to base,_ " Major Fel ordered.

Everyone peeled off.

Arquitens class light cruisers began to descend to the surface, escorting Imperial troop transports and providing fire support for the troops on the ground.

More Tie fighters roared by and pounded the UNSC frontline into slag.

Back on the ground itself, Imperial walkers stomped their way towards the city, their massive footsteps vibrating through the soil.

Imperial hover tanks, Purge Trooper battle droids, and stormtrooper infantry advanced towards the UNSC frontlines.

The UNSC had to get out.

And Soon.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _On a ridge over-looking the capital city_.

As the battle for the Batarian capital city, what was left of it anyway, continued to escalate.

UNSC Frigates and Corvettes came down from orbit to engage the Imperial light cruisers.

They were also there to cover the evacuation that was taking place in the city center.

The Systems Alliance team decided to pack up and get going.

Ahsoka watched through her binoculars to watch the battle.

At the same time, Jane, Nihlus, and Kaiden were getting the others to pack up. The Kodiaks were on their way with Garrus, Tali, and Liara.

"This is incredible," Jenkins said. "I'm surprised they held out this long".

"They were willing to challenge the Empire," Ahsoka said, still looking through her binoculars. "Of coarse they were going to last this long".

" _Cortez? You and Harris gonna be hear soon with the others?_ " Jane Asked the pilot over her comm.

Two kodiaks appeared out of the night sky and flew towards the small campsite.

" _Right here ma'am,_ " Cortez said over the radio.

" _Welcome aboard ladies. First stop: anywhere but here_ ," Harris said as the two kodiaks came in for a landing.

That's when the roar of Tie fighter engines could be heard.

And sure enough, a flight of Tie fighters came in behind them.

"Cortez! Harris! You've got Ties on your sixes!" Kaiden said. "Evade! I Say Again: Evade!"

But it was too late. The Tie fighters swooped in and open fire.

Green laser bolts struck the Alliance transports.

Their engine sections belched fire and smoke before they spun out of control.

They hit the ground, kicking up dust and debris.

" _Gawh! We're hit. We're going down. Mayday! Mayday! *Skkrreeee*._ " Cortez tried to say before his voice cut to static.

"Cortez! Harris!" Come on, let's get over there and help them!" Jane ordered.

Everyone rushed to the two crash sites.

Kaiden and Jenkins used their Omni-tools to cut through the hatch on Cortez's shuttle. When they were through, Liara, Tali, came out, carrying Cortez on their shoulders.

He had shrapnel in his leg and torso, along with a few bruises. They set Cortez down as Navy Corpsman started to administer Medi-gel from her omni-tool, in order to reduce the pain.

Ahsoka used the force to rip the busted hatch away from the second shuttle.

Harris, his co-pilot, and Garrus Vakarian, all tried to get out.

But then the wreckage burst into flames, and an exlosion ripped through the shuttle.

Harris was killed by the burning shrapnel. But his co-pilot managed to run out of the shuttle.

Only she was on fire, and screaming.

Even Garrus didn't get out unscathed. He shouted in pain as the right side of his face was singed.

"Holy Shit!" One of the Marines said.

"Stop drop and role! Stop drop and role!" Another ordered.

The screaming pilot rolled around on the ground while one of the Marines started pouring water from his canteen to help her put out the flames.

They eventually put out the flames, but the pilot had expired.

"Fuck!" One of the Marines shouted.

Moments later, Several Imperial light cruisers, along with some transports, broke through the clouds of the night sky.

They bombarded the UNSC-occupied city from afar.

The transports released more Tie fighters, and the UNSC sent their own interceptors to meet them in array.

Liara hugged Kaiden after the whole ordeal for comfort.

"Now what are we going to do?" She asked as she buried her face in his shoulder.

That's when Red and Green blaster bolts began to strike the ground all around them.

Imperial RTT (recon troop transports) and TX-130 hover tanks began to fire on the group.

They were surrounded by three platoons worth of stormtroopers.

"Everyone get into cover!" Jane ordered.

The team scattered.

An 8-wheeled M35 Mako APC, with an automatic 20mm cannon, moved into position to engage the Imperial light armor and infantry.

Jane, Kaiden, and the other Marines took cover. So did Tali, Liara, Garrus, Nihlus.

Ahsoka stood out in the open. She pulled her lightsabers from her belt.

She ignited them, and white blades projected from their hilts.

Imperial blaster fire began to hit all around them.

Ahsoka put her Jedi training to use, expertly deflecting every round that came her way. Some even flying right back into those who fired them in the first place.

The M35 Mako entered the fray. It fired it 20mm cannon, ripping apart several stormtroopers.

However, the Mako was just a light recon veichle. It wasn't going to last long.

As fate would have it, the Mako was covered in blaster hits. The laser bolts burrowed into the shield, the hull, and finally the ammo compartment. The stored ammo ignited and burst into flames. Secondary explosions ripped the tank apart like a fiery can opener.

The Citadel operatives opened fire.

Blue energy began to emit from Liara's body as she prepared to use her biotics. She threw a warp at one of the Stormtroopers, and the energy began to disintegrate his armor, until it burned him away for good. He screamed until he disappeared from existence.

Garrus, who's face was scarred on its right side, used his omni-tool to fire an electrical charge that short-circuited one of the TX-130s.

Talk used her omni-tool to launch a holographic combat drone. "Combat drone away. Go get them Chatika!" Tali said.

The orange hologram the size and shape of a basketball hovered over to a few stormtroopers.

They advanced and fired at the team, and then they stopped to look at the drone with curiosity.

That's when the drone started to electrocute them.

Kaiden and his Marines fired on the stormtroopers, taking down a few of them.

But the rain storm of Imperial firepower cut down several Marines.

Nihlus used a grenade launcher to blast away at the enemy light tanks. One stalled out, but the rest kept advancing. And he was out of grenades.

As the Empire continued the advance, Jane took cover.

She reached for her omni-tool and spoke into it.

"Shepard to Normandy. Come in Normandy!" She said.

" _Shepard. Go ahead_ ," the voice of Captain Anderson said.

"Sir...we have a problem," she said.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _SSV Normandy. Over-looking the UNSC Evacuation_.

With state of the art stealth technology, the crew of the Normandy was able to watch the battle between the UNSC and Empire from a safe distance.

Tie Fighters and Longswords engaged in crazy dogfights.

In another clash of Titanium-A (UNSC) and Durasteel (Empire), warships from both sides were blasting away at each other.

Green lasers and yellow streaks of lightning flew across the void of space to do what they were built for: Naval warfare.

The hollowed remains of some ships floated lifelessly through space. Bodies were among the wreckage.

Flight Lieutenant Jeff 'Joker' Moreau watched from the pilot seat of the Normandy. His CO, Captain Anderson, along with a couple other crewmen watched.

"Anyone got some popcorn?" Joker asked.

" _Shepard to Normandy. Come in Normandy!_ " She said.

"Shepard. Go ahead," the voice of Captain Anderson said.

" _Sir...we have a problem,_ " she said.

"What is it Commender?" Anderson asked.

" _We've got a problem Captain. Imperial forces are swarming our position. We're under attack. We need support and we need it yesterday,"_ she said over the sound of blaster fire.

"Copy that Commander. We're on our way," the Captain said before he looked at Joker.

Joker punched in a few keys on the terminal and the Normandy was on its way.

The Alliance Frigate swooped through the mess that was a space battle.

An Imperial light cruiser and two transports blocked its path.

"Joker...let 'em have it," Anderson ordered.

Joker nodded and charged up the Thanix cannon. It was a weapon that could fire molten metal at lightning fast speeds.

When the cannon was charging up, the Imperial warships fired. Tie fighters chased after the agile Alliance frigate.

Laser bolts slammed into the hull of the ship.

Anderson punched the PA system. "Adams. Damage report," Anderson demanded.

" _Sir our barriers are down, and the hull is breached in the three parts of the ship. Multiple injuries. But no fatalities_ ," Adams said.

"Joker," the Captain said.

"Okay girl," Joker said as he slammed the button that fired the main gun. "Give every thing you've got".

What looked like a blue comet blasted away from the Normandy and slammed right through the Imperial light cruiser.

The Normandy swooped right through the wreckage and headed for the surface.

" _Don't worry Shepard. We're coming. Just hang tight,_ " Anderson said to himself.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _On a ridge over-looking the capital city_.

Three Imperial mechanized platoons continued to advance.

Ahsoka deflected laser bolt after laser bolt.

But it wasn't enough.

The Systems Alliance Marines fired their grenade launchers and MA5B Assault rifles.

But it wasn't enough.

The Citadel operatives used their omni-tools and biotics for what they were worth.

But it wasn't enough.

Imperial tanks stalled when they were short-circuited. But they advanced after a few minutes to continue the assault.

Some stormtroopers were blasted, cut apart, or vaporized.

But many more were fighting.

The Normandy's Marines fell, one by one, until only Jane, Kaiden, and Jenkins remained.

Garrus was wounded and sitting up against a crate to fire his sniper rifle. He killed a few stormies, but he was low on rounds.

Tali stood up and fired. But she was grazed by a laser bolt, causing her to shout in pain. Her suit was damaged and she had a cauterized wound on her side. She sealed suit and stuck a medical vaccine in her side to stop the flow of bacteria that could prove lethal to the weak immune systems of her people. She then continued the fight.

Nihlus used his shotgun to blast any stormtrooper that got to close. But when he was reloading, one stormtrooper tackled him and drove a knife into his abdomen. He screamed in pain and tried to swat the trooper away, but the stormtrooper pointed a gun to his head.

He closed his eyes, ready to accept his fate. But that's when a hail of bullets shredded through the stormtrooper. Blood got on Nihlus' face. But thank the spirits it wasn't his. He looked to see where the bullets came from and saw that they came from Jenkins, as steam poured out of his red hot barrel. They nodded at each other.

Kaiden was wounded, and Liara was kneeling next to him, nursing his wounds.

Ahsoka continued fighting as best as she could.

"Normandy! Where are you?" Shepard yelled into her comm as she continued to fire her DMR into the tidal wave of white armor until her rifle clicked. the ammo counter displayed on her rifle read 00. No more rounds.

All she got was static from her radio.

But That's when she heard the whine of an engine.

Several engines actually.

That's when several viechles and walkers exploded.

Shepard and the others looked up to see seven Pelican gunships circle around the company of Imperial mechanized viechles.

As they circled around the Imperial light tanks, like birds of prey, missiles and tracers flew through the night sky and struck down all around the Imperial tanks and troopers.

Troopers were ripped apart, tanks were ripped open like tomato cans, and walkers lost their heads.

But the Imperial TX-130 tanks fired back. They fired missiles and their beam cannons fired back.

The Pelicans dumped flares to confuse the missiles, and it partially worked. But the laser beams flew straight and true. Three of the Pelicans lost control and lost altitude, crashing into the surface.

The remaining Pelicans still had more firepower. More missiles and tracers slammed into the surface. Stormtroopers were blasted apart in several directions, while they transports and mechanized support was ripped apart.

Eventually, the remnants of the Imperial convoy began to retreat. The Pelicans landed, and several squads of ODSTs disembarked. They fired on the retreating Imperial stormtroopers. The stormtroopers fired back.

Troopers from both sides fell to the ground, dead. But the UNSC had won the hour.

The day, however, looked to be in the Empire's fingertips.

One squad of Hell-jumpers walked up to the Citadel operatives, who were recovering amidst the wounded and dead. Not to mention their destroyed viechles.

"That's far enough UNSC! What are you doing here?" Jane Shepard said as she and her companions, the able bodied ones, readied themselves for a fight.

The Hell-jumpers aimed their weapons at Jane and her team. But one of them held his fist up. They shouldered their weapons.

"You know...you always did have a bad habit of being ungrateful. Isn't that right baby sister?" The ODST leader said.

Jane froze. Then she lowered her weapon. "Lower your weapons," she ordered. Her team acknowledged. "John? Is that you?"

The ODST depolarized his visor to show his face.

"In the flesh," John said with a smile, before putting his serious face on. "Now tell me why you're here, and why I had too, once again, pull your sorry ass out of the fire".

That's when Ahsoka walked up.

"We're here to gather intel on the Empire...and you to be honest. I wanted to convince the Rebel Alliance to declare war on the Empire. But they didn't think that this was much too look at," Ahsoka said. "I wanted to prove them wrong".

"Hmmm. I see. Wait a minute...you look familiar," Shepard said.

"I can't say that We've met,"Ahsoka said.

"Hmm. Hey Cobra," Shepard said, prompting Viper Company's leader to step forward. "Remember our mission to Onderon during the Clone Wars. And you shot that Orange alien, forcing her to drop that black chick?"

"Oh yeah. That mission was fun," Cobra said.

"You killed my boyfriend's old admirer?" Ahsoka asked. "You killed Steela Gerrera".

"Sounds like we did you a favor," Cobra said callously. "And her brother killed three of my men, who all had families, so they deserved their pain".

Ahsoka frowned.

Jane stepped forward to ease the tension.

"So how's the War going John?" Jane asked.

"It could be better. But I don't know if we can win it," he said.

"Is there a way for you too win?" She asked.

He looked at her for a few seconds.

"You can go back to the Citadel and tell its pathetic leaders to get off their lazy asses and fight," John said. "And tell them that if they don't, then the Empire will come after them next. And they won't be able to use us as meat shields then".

Everyone looked at John with shock written on their faces. That's when the Normandy landed.

"Looks like your ride's here. I won't keep you, but you should think of what I said. It was great to see you again sis," John said as he and his men walked back to their Pelicans.

Ahsoka and the citadel operatives boarded the Normandy with their wounded and undamaged equipment.

Then they went back to Citadel space.

The entire way, Everyone thought about what John said.

Perhaps John was right. It was time to get the Council involved.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Outside the Museum of Batarian glory, near the UNSC evacuation site in the city center_.

All over the city, the left overs of the battle littered the streets.

Viechles were ripped open and burning.

Bodies from both sides were everywhere.

Weapons were discarded next to the soldiers that carried them...before they died suddenly.

Gas cartridges and shell casings were everywhere.

Fires raged hard.

Both sides had viciously bombed territory held by the other side.

Buildings were nothing but skeletal remnants of what they used to be.

But it was far from over.

The Imperial army wasn't done fighting the UNSC, because the UNSC wasn't done evacuating yet.

Imperial Star-Destroyers were inching their way towards the city.

Sense the UNSC Infinity and its fleet were being pushed back, the Empire could advance and provide limited Naval support. Key word 'limited'.

The UNSC Fleet was still very much in this fight. In fact, the Navy had sent three of its own down to the surface to assist in the Evacuation.

They were Senior Chief Petty Officer Jerome-092, Senior Chief Petty Officer Douglas-042, and Senior Chief Petty Officer Alice-130.

They were Spartan-II's.

They were Red Team.

Red Team has become somewhat of a legend. They were apart of the original 75 spartan-II candidates. But they survived the augmentation process with about 30 others.

This team of spartans helped fight on countless worlds in service to the UNSC. But they are most famous for going MIA aboard the UNSC Spirit of Fire during the Battle of Arcadia in Feb. 2531.

After being re-discovered in 2559 on the ark, they were back with the UNSC, ready to fight any enemy that dared to challenge the UNSC.

Wearing Mark-VI armor that greatly resembled their old Mark-IV armor, they went to emerge from the bunker they were in.

They saw wounded UNSC Marines being treated for their injuries, and they saw other Marines on their radio sets, directing other marine Units towards certain parts of the battle.

When they emerged from the bunker's exit, they saw that the dusk sky was blocked out by black smoke, which rolled over the battlefield.

A unit of Marines and a convoy of vehicles waiting for them.

"Alright everyone, listen up. The evac site's getting hit hard from a museum overlooking the area. We need to take that firing position and buy them some time, oorah?" Jerome asked.

"OORAH!" The Marines replied.

The three spartans and the 36 Marines jumped aboard the light viechles.

Red team took over an M12 LRV Warthog. Jerome hopped into the driver seat, Douglas rode shotgun, and Alice grabbed the LAAG mounted o the bed.

The convoy, consisting of 3 Cyclops mechs, a pair of Mastodon APCs, and 4 regular Warthogs, moved forward.

Everyone gunned their engines and moved through the city.

They passed by three blocks worth of the front line. Imperial troopers and UNSC Marines were contesting the frontline, but the Empire was pushing forward aggressively. It was only a matter of time before they broke through.

"I see the Museum," Douglas said.

"Alice. Scan for targets along the windows," Jerome ordered.

"Roger that," Alice said.

They saw a field in front of the museum. It had a statue of Three Batarian workers being led to the future by two soldiers.

Other UNSC Marines were trying to push on it with armored support.

A pair of Scorpion tanks advanced, blasting away at the building as they went. They put quite a few holes in the building's facade.

But as they got closer, a volley of missiles arched up from the roof and swooped down on the tanks. They were both struck. They exploded, flames pouring out of every nook and cranny.

No one tried to get out.

" _Jerome. Those Marines are pinned down in front of the building. It's time you do what you do best,_ " A voice said inside Jerome's head.

"Thanks Isabel," Jerome said to the AI. "Everyone suppress that building".

Alice and the other Warthog gunners sprayed the front of the building.

Imperial lasers stopped pouring out of the windows, as they were pinned down.

The Mastodon's and the Cyclops' poured everything they had into the building facade.

Their auto cannons fired explosive tipped rounds that blasted holes into the outer wall. Soon, nothing was coming out of the building except screams of pain.

"Move up! GO! Go! Go! Use your grenades!" The Marine officer ordered his men, who threw grenades through the blasted open sections of the wall.

Jerome, Red Team, and the platoon of Marines, all dismounted their viechles.

"Alright everyone, get inside. We've got a building to clear out," Jerome said. "Isabel, tell the convoy viechles to keep suppressing the upper floors".

" _You got it Jerome_ ," she said.

Red Team and the Marines moved inside. All they found in the front room was carnage.

There was also some Batarian displays. They included technology, works of art, and propaganda posters that glorified the false glory of the Hegemony.

They moved further into the building, encountering an occasional enemy hard point. A few firefights ensued.

Eventually, they started heading up towards the floor that the imperial 'crow's nest' was on.

"Charlie Platoon, keep this floor secured. Alpha and Bravo Platoon's, keep the building's perimeter secured. Red Team and I will continue upstairs," Jerome said.

"Yes Sir!" The Platoon leaders said.

Red Team ascended the stairs with caution. They encountered several small Imperial fire teams along the way.

Jerome and Alice used their battle rifles to pick off the Imperial troopers that were out of cover.

Douglas, being on point, walked up to the remaining Imperials.

They were too scared to get up. So it was easy for Douglas to blast the last two stormtroopers in their faceplates.

The three spartans continued forward. They eventually made it to the top floor.

"All viechles. This is ISA 1307-2. Hold fire. We're on the top floor," Isabel said through Jerome's set.

" _Roger that Red Team. Good hunting,_ " the Marine officer from earlier said.

Red dots appeared on everyone's motion trackers. They weren't UNSC.

"I've got movement," Alice said.

"Watch your sectors and check those corners," Jerome said.

The team advanced and moved through the side rooms that connected with the enemy's 'crow's nest'.

It was packed with Imperial soldiers that had heavy weapons. All of which were pointed at the Evac site.

Jerome was in a room that was connected to the crow's nest. The wall was busted out. He waited for Alice and Douglas to breach the door that led into the room.

The door was blasted open. Flash bangs were thrown in. The spartans all rushed in and cleared out the room.

Jerome jumped through the hole in the wall and spartan charged a stormtrooper out the building. He then grabbed his knife and started hacking away at an unlucky officer who found himself within reach.

Alice moved in and swept the room with her BR-55.

Douglas blasted a stormtrooper in the face with his M90 shotgun. The trooper's faceplate was full of bloody holes.

Another trooper tried to jump on Douglas's back and plant a jetpack on his helmet.

"Oh no ya' don't!" Douglas said as he used his thruster pack to jet backwards into the wall behind him.

He smashed into the wall, crushing the trooper against the wall, and miraculously crushing the jetpack without setting it off.

The room was clear.

Alice and Douglas walked over to Jerome as he pulled his knife out of a stormtrooper's neck.

"Command, this is Sierra-092," Jerome said. "We've secured the enemy's 'crow's nest on the fifth floor".

" _Excellent work Red Team. You are now in a position to engage enemy hostiles attacking the vac site. Be advised: We've intercepted an Imperial transmission from the Museum. An Imperial Battalion is on its way to your position. They're going to try and take that building back from you to hammer the evac site. How copy? Over,_ " the UNSC officer said.

"Solid copy command. What's our target from this position?" Jerome asked.

" _Stand by. Patching you in to General Marshal_." the officer said.

" _Red Team! This is Marshal. Enemy forces are encroaching on our position. I need you too pick off their heavy gunners, and try to give their gunships a headache. "We'll deal with the enemy ground viechles,_ " Marshal said.

"Copy Sir. We're on it. Stand by!" Jerome said.

"Douglas, take out the gunships. I'll take their AT teams," Jerome said.

Douglas-042 lugged an M41 SPNKr 'jackhammer' rocket launcher over his shoulder.

Jerome grabbed his sniper rifle.

"And Alice...guard our flanks. Discourage the curious," Jerome ordered.

"On it," Alice said as she looked around.

Then she saw an E-web heavy repeating blaster turret. She walked over to it and ripped the gun from its tripod.

She looked at Jerome and nodded before walking out into the hallway.

Jerome and Douglas went to their positions. Jerome lied down and pointed his rifle out of a thin gash in the wall.

Douglas set up near a a large hole that was ripped into the wall.

He used his launcher and sited up on an Imperial gunship. He fired. Smoke shot out the back of his SPNKr, and a rocket launched out of one of the tubes, sailing into the sky almost majestically. Then the rocket struck the gunship. An explosion ripped right through the ship's engines before it lost control and crashed into the surface.

He fired another rocket. Another gunship went down.

Jerome scanned the area on the other side of the evac site and saw Imperial troopers running around on his thermal imaging.

He fired on the ones that had smoke trails appear around them. The figures that showed up as white began to turn gray as their body heat escaped, after he shot them.

He continued to kill more AT (anti tank) gunners. Eventually, he saw them running away.

As he and Douglas continued their work, General Marshal came back over the horn.

" _Spartans. We've been reduced to 56% combat effectiveness. If you don't take out those gunships, then this FUBAR situation gets worse in a hurry_!" Marshal ordered.

"Copy that. Stand by," Isabel said through Jerome's comm.

Imperial heavy infantry continued to fall, and so did the gunships in the air.

UNSC tanks that manned the perimeter of the evac site blasted away at the approaching Imperial viechles.

Several Imperial tanks exploded. This caused their Infantry and lighter armor to hold back.

The Imperial offensive was beginning to lose its steam. But that's when a panicked voice came in over the radio.

"Red Team! This is Charlie Company! Our position is being overrun. The Empire's here with reinforcements. We tried to hold them off, but Alpha Platoon was wiped out. Bravo and Charlie took heavy losses, and we lost almost half of our viechles. We Are Leaving. Watch your backs. They'll be up there with you soon," Charlie lead said.

"Copy that Charlie Company. Now get yourselves out of here," Isabel ordered.

"Sorry Ma'am. But give em an ass kicking for us," the officer said before the transmission was cut.

"You hear that Alice?" Jerome asked.

"Affirmative," Alice said as she guarded the hallway.

As Jerome and Douglas continued firing on the enemy forces, Alice saw Imperial Stormtroopers down the hallway.

"Enemy foot mobiles incoming!" Alice called out as she fired her 'borrowed' E-web turret. The heavy repeating blaster sent hot laser bolt down the hall.

Several Stormtroopers had bolts burned through their armor.

Some tried to fire on her from the end of the hallway, while a few others tried to flank her from the side rooms.

As the Imperial troopers tried to push up, she gunned them down. When she saw that some were trying to flank her on her motion trackers, she tossed a pair of M2 frags into the room. She heard screaming and explosions.

But nonetheless, they were pushing hard. Imperial blaster fire hit her. An alarm went off in her helmet as her shields began to drain. She pulled back while still firing her confiscated turret. When she ran out of ammo, she tossed the turret to the floor and switched to her BR-55.

Imperial troopers began to push harder and Alice had no shields.

A squad of troopers tried to flank her again.

Thinking quickly, she tossed her remaining grenades in the room.

One trooper tried to run away from the explosions by running towards her.

 _Big mistake_.

She grabbed the trooper by the thrown and used him as a meat shield.

As blaster bolts hit the trooper she was holding, her shields began to recharge, and she fired her BR-55 with her other hand.

More troopers fell. when she needed to reload, she tossed the trooper aside and took cover behind a corner.

Alice-130 fired her BR-55 with her right hand, and used her other hand to fire her M6C magnum.

More troopers fell. But she only had so much ammo.

"Hey guys. Are we almost done?" Alice asked.

Back inside, Jerome and Douglas' actions caught the attention of a trio of Imperial gunships. They flew towards the building and fired.

" _Red Team. This is command. "You've bought the evac site valuable time. Well done. Now get your asses to the roof ASAP! You're in danger of being overrun_!" Command ordered.

"Roger that Command," Jerome said. He and Douglas nodded at each other before they took off into the hallway.

They noticed the carnage that Alice was responsible for.

"You've been busy," Douglas said.

"That implies that this is a chore. But I can do this all day," Alice said.

"Douglas. You're on point. Lead us to the roof," Jerome ordered, pointing at a door that led to the roof.

Sierra-042 looked at the door. The door panel was deactivated, so he went up to it and ripped it open.

He went up the stairs, followed by Jerome and Alice.

"Spirit of Fire, This is Red Team," Isabel said through Jerome's comm. "We need vac on the rooftop of our location".

"Copy that. Pelican inbound to your position," Captain Cutter said.

"This is Bravo-029, inbound from the Spirit of Fire. We're on our way Red Team," a female said.

When Red Team was on the roof, Imperial forces rushed up the stairs to get to them.

That's when hundreds of tracers ripped through the air above them, killing several Imperial Troopers.

They turned to see a Pelican backing up and landing on the roof.

A squad of Marines, wearing urban camo combat armor and armed with BR-55s, fanned out and gave the Spartan's covering fire.

"Let's go home Red Team," Jerome said.

Red Team boarded the Pelican and the Marines followed.

When everyone was aboard, the rear ramp closed up.

Stormtroopers filled up the roof and began firing on the Pelican.

Just as it took off, an Imperial gunship blocked its path.

"Everyone hang on," the pilot said as she fired the gunship's missile pods at the Imperial craft. It was hit and forced to the ground.

The Pelican headed for orbit.

"Great job today Red Team. We may've lost today. But we saved a lot of lives. That's what counts," Jerome said.

All over the city, UNSC ships were taking off. They were all backed to the brim with Marines, equipment, and viechles.

The Empire was overrunning the city.

The UNSC may've put up a good fight, but the Empire was going to ride this momentum for as far as they could.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _In orbit above Khar'shan, ISD Chimera, Flagship of the Imperial 7th Fleet_.

Grand Admiral Thrawn watched as UNSC forces began to pull away from the system.

They ripped massive portals into the fabric of space and time.

Each UNSC warship entered a portal before they disappeared.

Only the Empire controlled the field.

"Congratulations Grand Admiral," Konstantine said. "UNSC forces are pulling back from the system. What are your orders now sir?"

Thrawn looked out over the battlefield.

He saw wreckages from both sides floating in space. It was a brutal fight for both sides, but more so for the UNSC in the long-term. The UNSC lost less ships, and unlike the Empire, they could not afford casualties. And they failed in their ultimate objective: Driving the Empire out of the Milky Way and bringing their puppets to their knees.

The Chiss Admiral smiled.

"Set a coarse for the Bahak system. We'll reclaim Batarian territory and drive on the UNSC's frontier worlds," Thrawn ordered.

Konstantin gave Thrawn a crisp salute and went to relay the orders to the rest of the 7th fleet.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _HIGHCOM Facility Bravo-6, Sydney, Commonwealth of Australia, Earth, Sol system, Center of UEG space, Milky Way galaxy_.

In a reinforced bunkers deep underground, the UNSC security council was convening to discuss the War effort.

"What's the situation Lord Hood?" President Montaine asked.

" _Well Sir, The Empire's driven us all the way back to the frontier and we've taken heavy casualties. But it looks like the Empire has stopped at the border. They must be gathering a fleet to attack us again. But it's only a matter of time until they come crashing over the border_ ," Hood said.

" _My forces have taken casaulties as well, in our fight against Atriox's forces. And the Empire is pursuing us towards Sangheili space,_ " Arbiter said from the Shadow of Intent.

"Is Battle group Dakota and the Infinity in any shape to face the Empire?" General Strauss asked.

" _No General. The Infinity's taken heavy damage, and the fleet's lost almost half it's ships. And we can't meet the Empire head on anymore. We need a new plan_ ," Hood said.

"How's our stockpile of Nuclear Warheads?" General Hogan asked.

"Not good," General Dellert said. "It's going to take weeks for us to build a proper stockpile. We have to use what we have sparingly".

"We also don't have the ships to just shove the Empire out of the system. We're still not at the production level that a war economy requires. We need more time," Hood said.

"So right now we need to buy time that we don't have with the few ships and nukes that are available?" Montaine asked.

"Yes Mister President. But lucky for all of us, I know someone who might be able to help," Osman said.

Everyone looked at Osman.

"Who?" Hood asked.

"Someone who's an expert with fighting off an enemy with an unlimited supply of warships," Osman said.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 _Undisclosed Location_.

A pair of ONI agents walked up to the farm.

This was an isolated Human colony on the edge of the frontier.

It didn't belong to the Systems Alliance or the UEG.

The field was full of workers who were being paid to tend to the wheat field and livestock.

The two agents walked up to the house and knocked on the front door.

An elderly woman answered the door.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" She asked.

The two agents held up their ID cards.

"Office of Naval Intelligence Ma'am. We just to ask you a few questions," they said.

She held up her hand.

"No need," she said before she turned over her shoulder towards someone in the house. "Honey. It's for you".

She stepped back from the door to allow an elderly man in his late sixties to stand in the doorway.

"Sir. We came here to ask you a few questions," one agent said before the other handed over a data pad.

The elderly man scrolled through it.

It showed reports of The Empire and their intention to conquer UEG space, and quite possibly the rest of galaxy. It also had a space at the bottom for a re-instatement signature for the UNSC Navy.

The man's eyes left the data pad and were looked at the agents.

"Admiral...will you help us?" One of the agents asked.

Preston Jeremiah Cole smiled.

"It took you long enough," he said as he typed his name on the space provided.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **That's chapter 11 folks. Hope you've enjoyed.**

 **About 2 chapters left.**

 **This is Grubkiller, over and out.**


	12. Chapter 12-reviews, direction, hiatus

**_Hey folks, Grubkiller here._**

 ** _I have a few things to say._**

 _1\. Sorry if it's been a while. I haven't started on the final chapter just yet. But I'm still going to eventually finish the story._

 _2\. But due to other fanfic works of mine, and a slight lack of interest, and college, I'm going to have to put this on Hiatus._

 _3\. Also, I've been reading your comments lately, and I've noticed that this is a Halo heavy crowd. And I tend to agree with most of you. And I've learned a few things that I didn't know about Halo. BTW, I've never read the Forerunner books, and I have no interest in doing so, so please try not to throw information from these books at me like I'm supposed to know them. I realize that I nerved the Halo universe to appeal to the SW crowd, and made it a realistic as possible. But for my next Halo/SW x-over story, I'm going to be more biased towards Halo._

 _As for the SW fans, well ... I'll try to make it a realistic Star Wars experience for you, but I'm more biased towards Halo._

 _Also, I'm disappointed in disney right now._ _(Rogue one was awesome, and Rebels was pretty good. But, they cancelled Clone Wars, retconned the EU, and The Last Jedi was bad Feminazi garbage.)_

* * *

 _But overall, don't worry, I'm going to get back to this story eventually. And I'm still excited to write that SW rebels/Halo crossover story that I've been talking about._


	13. Chapter 13-Author's note

**Hey everyone. This is Grubkiller.**

 **Look guys, I know that many of you are invested in this story. However, despite trying to write another chapter or two, I just lost interest in writing it. I know I said that I would finish it. But then I became busy in my life, and I had so many other ideas for stories that I wanted to right that I just lost interest in this one. And I think that there were too may ideas that I wanted to implement into this story that I just couldn't write them all. In short, this story became too big for its britches.**

 **So, It pains me to say that I'll be canceling this story, the first fanfic that I've ever written.**

* * *

 _ **But fear not. It's been a great run. I enjoyed reading most of your reviews and I've been looking for ways to improve my writing and storytelling because of it. And because of the your reviews, the end of Star Wars Rebels, and so many other reasons, I have a good idea of ho I want to write my next SW/Halo crossover.**_

 _ **My next story is one that I'll be writing in the future. I'm going to call it Storm on the Horizon. It's going to be a SW Rebels/Halo x-over that takes place right after Halo 3 and depicts a cold war between the UNSC/Sangheili and the Galactic Empire. It'll also stories from 343's Halo 4, 5, and wars 2, and maybe a little bit of spartan ops. but with some Star Wars thrown in. Expect to see the Rebels characters, the Banished, the Storm Covenant, the Prometheans, and the monument to all you sins. And there will be no mass effect whatsoever!**_

* * *

 **But anyway, thank you so much for all of your support, constructive criticism, and feedback on this year long journey. I hope that you'll all take an interest in my other stories, especially the future SW Rebels/Halo Crossover.**

 **But anyway, until next time, this is Grubkiller, over and out.**


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